Anyone ever read the DUNE series by Frank Herbert? In my personal opinion, one of the best Sci Fi series of all time. I've read the books and I've seen the original movie which flopped in the US (yes I admit it), and apparently made it big in Europe, and have also seen the 2 later mini series produced by the Sci Fi Channel. All in all they are all a real psychedelic trip to say the least.
Basically on a vast desert planet scorched by the sun with barely a blade of grass, water is the most precious resource. It is stored, gathered, and cared for as life itself. It is the mission of the natives of this planet to once again transform their world into a green water rich oasis.
An interesting part of the story is the Water of Life, a special poisonous liquid containing the blood essence of a baby giant earthworm drowned in water, which has the power to transform its drinker into higher states of consciousness and psychic energy, if he / she succeeds in transforming the poison in their body and rendering the liquid harmless.
Much can be learned from all this, and I recommend reading the books even if for nothing else but interesting reading, entertainment, and maybe burning a few of your brain cells. It's worth it.
So in Chinese medicine water is known as the Element of Life, and even the Ming Men or Kidney point is known as the "Gate of Life". Water as we know is the Primordial Element that precedes creation even, in the Bible. We are. our bodies as adults mostly made up of water about 75%, and even more so in infants about 90%.
A liquid medium is required for chemical reactions to take place, and as a carrier. You can survive weeks without food, but only a few days without water if you are a normal human being.
Water and drinking plenty of it is sooooo important. I cannot stress it enough. I tell everyone especially my patients to have at least 2 liters a day, in the winter or summer. And that's without doing exercise or heavy workouts. Lack of water and especially dehydration can be the cause of many illnesses and aches and pains in the body.
Especially when treating patients with Osteopathy, drinking water is paramount, as the treatment tends to dry patients out even during a session. Fluids tend to go to wherever one is being treated as the body rallies its resources to work in those specific areas. The fluids must be replenished. They also work to detoxify the said areas of pain, lesion, and discomfort.
I do my best to practice what I preach to everyone. usually I am pretty good at it. So a couple of years ago, I'm at a 2 day martial arts seminar in Caesarea over looking the Mediterranean Sea. Breathtaking and beautiful. and the food was decent.
I'm in this huge gym getting knocked around, being shlepped on the floor, and thrown around by friends half my age or more. Fighting in the rafters, going through fitness and technique drills, holding my own and getting my wonderful fill of bumps and bruises.
Don't even ask me why I do it. I enjoy it!!! Lo and behold. I forgot to drink enough water. I thought I did, but with the hot weather and expending lots of energy I just did not estimate correctly. Plus someone forgot to have the staff refill the big water cooler for everyone! Sound familiar? I was way too busy with myself to take care of myself, and I thought I knew myself better than myself, and I paid for it dearly.
I had my Homeopathics with me as well as my home made Dit Da Jow ointment for my body. Love the natural stuff!!! So I handled everything pretty well, but it wasn't till a couple of hours later when I got to my friends where I was spending the weekend, that I realized I was totally dehydrated. My aches and pains were pretty much under control, BUT I felt very weak, I had a dull headache, and I was a squeezed shmatta that could not move off the couch. I quickly realized where I was at and what I needed to do.
After a few cups of Seltzer water I was still far from where I needed to be. I then remembered about Electrolytes and about how I had recently recommended them to a patient that was being helped by them. Essential chemicals / ions that your body needs in order to balance its fluids and to carry out cellular function and to maintain proper metabolism.
VERY IMPORTANT!!!
You can pretty much pick up a decent Rehydration solution or powder at any drug store these days. My friends where I was, are also into health and holistics, but alas, the big tub of Rehydration powder they had was for their goats and it clearly stated on the bottle that they were not for human consumption. Darn. Close but no cigar. I was really tempted, but as bad as I was feeling, I had no desire to risk being turned into a bleating goat. What to do?
So my friend's wife who is a very smart woman, and who also enjoys researching the internet for all sorts of neat stuff, tells me she has a recipe for a home made rehydration drink. Really?!
As soon as she got me the info, I mixed 3 table spoons of sugar, with 1 tea spoon of salt, in 4 cups of water, shook well and dissolved in a bottle, and Voila. I drank it all down, but it was not until the next afternoon after having had another batch the next morning, that I began to feel lighter, more mobile, and felt the heaviness lifting from my head. I had apparently lost lots of water and needed major replenishing. It really helped, and of course I also had more liquids period as well.
I was so excited after that, that I even started looking up more recipes online. Feel free to do the same. In general, don't bother spending money on energy / electrolyte drinks and things of that nature. Unless you have to. Obviously it pays to have some Rehydration solution or powder around in case of emergencies, but you can make your own anyway. It's cheap and easy. Here is an example of one recipe I really like. 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and baking soda, added to 1 Liter of water.
Shaken and not stirred!!!
I am talking to myself here too. ALWAYS keep yourself well hydrated on a regular basis, and also try adding an apple, orange, and banana to your daily diet for some natural electrolytes. And if you're planning on working out summer or winter, drink extra water and bring more along, as well as a mix of your favourite home made Rehydration drink.
I hopefully have learned a big lesson from this experience, so I'll save you a step. So as it says in the good book DUNE, "Water is Life!"
L'Chaim! Hic!
Wake up and start living!!!
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