Monday, October 11, 2010

Water, Water

I'm wondering if I'm dehydrated? I don't drink much water. It's not distaste, it's more like forgetfulness. I have always been a bit snobbish about people who carry their water bottles around with them everywhere they go. Truth be known, I harbor a good deal of prejudice about those water bottles in general. Aside from the obvious pollution problem, it seems to me ludicrous that water should cost more per gallon than gasoline. And I wonder what goes into those fancily designed and fancily labeled bottles anyway. Are the contents really very much healthier than what comes out of the tap? I remember the response of a medical doctor of our acquaintance many years ago, when offered a choice between tap and bottled water. He chose tap, on the grounds that he might as well build up his immune system to all the chemicals we ingest; and what we routinely ingest in the course of our daily lives, I suspect, is far more dangerous to our health than tap water.

No matter. I have been feeling lately that I'm drying up. Perhaps it's no more than the reality of age. But my skin is dry. My eyes itch constantly. My body's entire plumbing system seems to have grown sluggish. I have also been experiencing some dizziness and more than usual fatigue. Could all this be attributed to dehydration? I don't know. But I woke this morning with the thought that it couldn't hurt to drink more water. And could maybe even help. Does anyone out there have any knowledge or experience in this area? I'd love to hear what others have to say.

Oh, by the way: did I mention that I'm back to "The Buddha Diaries"? I plan to be posting more regularly in the coming days, and hope to build my readership back up. Please pass on the word! And for those who, like myself, could use a little help with those always confusing California propositions, here's a link to a useful progressive voter's guide. The commercials that we see on television only add to the confusion. Thanks to Janice for passing on this guide to me.

2 comments:

Mark said...

As a really active person, I can tell you that not having enough water will really mess you up. When I haven't had enough water during my day, I'm more tired, more sore, and just generally feel strange.
Also, water ups your metabolism quite a bit. If you drink a full 12 oz glass of water every morning immediately after you wake up, just doing that alone will help you shed a few extra pounds over the course of a few weeks (strange though it sounds).
I just drink tap, but I always have a water bottle with me. Just an essential. Hope that helps at all! And I'm glad you're back!

CHI SPHERE said...

Well I'm late to this entry but always thought Dr Dean Edell had it right when he said we all need a little continuous stream flowing through us.

We do live in a desert and the last few months record low humidity days have been present. We are mostly water so we should keep our bodies replenished and drink filtered from the tap at home and carry an aluminum drinking container. Mine measure one liter and since I often paint in a boom at 30' to 80' I have 4 available in my vehicle and two in the boom. Just take time to drink every hour for 30 seconds and you'll feel a sense of ease and will loose weight. We are the river of life!