Hydration

What Is Hydration? 

The cells in the human body are comprised mostly of water, it is said that from 60% to 80% of a person's weight is water. Therefore, a person who weighs 60kg contains from 36kg to 48 kg of water, in order to survive, a human being needs this much water.

Hydration is simply the percentage of intracellular water held and utilised. The amount of water recycled daily by an adult person's kidneys is approximately 190 litres. The water that is discharged daily through urine and sweat is around 2.5 litres and must be replaced.

  • At only 1% dehydration our ability to think clearly and cope with stress begins to diminish.
  • At around 3% thirst and discomfort is experienced and our ability to perform both physically (Up to 30%) and mentally is significantly impaired.
  • From +7% dehydration this condition becomes chronic and our genes do not function properly starting to break down.  
  • In excess of 10% dehydration the person can go into a coma, as the body does not have sufficient intracellular fluid to function.
  • Should our intracellular hydration continue to decrease to between 15% & 20% the effects are likely to be fatal.

Extended periods of dehydration can have a significant effect on our health & our ability to fight off infection & disease. Many studies show that a significant percentage of society are constantly dehydrated, there is no substitute for drinking water! Coffee, tea & most soft drinks can act as diuretics, which all contribute to further dehydration. Is it any wonder that we can feel tired & stressed for no apparent reason?

Water and DNA

Water is the matrix of life, but it is also a crucial medium by which the most important life-supporting information is transferred. The core impact that water has on life, DNA and our genes is significant. Water allows the gene to express itself and the proteins thus activated perform their functions in water. By storing information from various genes and hormones, water preserves a great deal of information about its surrounding environment, information that sustains and ensures the normal sustenance of the organs in the human body. As you can see, water, ubiquitous in nature, is ubiquitous as well in human existence.

Cells have cytoplasms and karyoplasms, the basic ingredient for cytoplasm and karyoplasm is water, the aqueous solution. This water acts as a buffer with a variety of solutes. Protein and genes do not react without water. Water becomes a playground for the enzymes and the proteins to act, so it effectively acts as a catalyst for metabolic reaction.

Water can affect the skeletal structure of DNA, affect the enzymes that express the genes in the DNA and actually express the genes effectively. Also, without water, the two strands of DNA do not uncoil and therefore the expression of genes does not occur. As discussed, water is ubiquitous throughout the molecular activities of a living body and helps life forms to continue living. If bad ingredients are present in water, this may affect the proteins, the enzymes and the DNA, causing a malfunction of the enzymes and serious problems in the metabolism. It is for these reasons that it is vitally important to drink good water. The conclusion is that you must drink what your genes want.