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Diversity - Hydration Equation, Balancing the flow of water through life

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

Problems with profound dehydration as a marathon athlete led to neuroendrocinologist Jaroslav Boublik to investigate a herbal formula developed by naturopath Leonie Hibbert. Success with this led to a research and development partnership that is now investigating a holistic scientific approach to cellular hydration at a fundamental level.

For over ten years I lived my life in the regimented world of modern scientific research. I travelled widely, specialised in neuroendocrinology – the study of the central nervous system hormones and their receptors – and achieved various honours in my profession, including a Fulbright Fellowship and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Salk Institute in San Diego. This was my life and there was never a moment that I doubted my passion or belief in science and what it could enable us to do.

But I had no idea at the time in my life was to be turned upside down. It began in late 1992, during my preparation for the Melbourne Marathon, which was to be run in June the following year. I was experiencing real difficulty. During training runs I was struggling at about the 20km point; despite drinking along the way and attempting to preload with water and sports drinks prior to the runs. I would suffer profound dehydration. The common term is “hit the wall and hit it I did! No matter what I did I wasn’t able to keep sufficient fluids in my body; I would lose all energy and have to stop the runs. To say this was frustrating is an understatement. I began to doubt my ability to achieve the goal I had set myself. My wife was seeing a natural health therapist, Leonie Hibbert. She suggested that I see Leonie Hibbert because she had some interesting formulas which were a combination of herbs, and other things I didn’t understand, that night be able to help me.

Sceptical as I was I went to see Leonie and the one hour session ended up being at least two hours of intense discussion. From that point on I started using the Aqua Formulas, or at least the original versions of the Formulas, and my life started to change. My training improved dramatically. I went into the marathon well-prepared, with a 44km run under my belt. Most of the long distance practice runs in the lead up to the marathon were done throughout the latter part of the summer, during the hottest part of summer I was completing 30km runs. I can remember a number of them where, even though the runs were done in the early part of the day, the temperature was getting up to 35°C near the end of the run – but at no time did I have problems with dehydration. After my previous experience, I can only attribute this remarkable improvement to the Aqua Formula. I had not changed anything else in my diet, training or rest patterns.

I completed the Melbourne Marathon in a reasonable time of 4 hrs 20 mins. I was using the Aqua Formulas during the race every half hour or so. The only problems I had were due to rain and wind in the third quarter, at which point my pace slowed appreciably. At no time was there any difficulty with temperature control or maintaining energy levels. At the three quarter mark, I was able to pick up my pace considerably, running the final kilometre in my quickest time for any kilometre of the race.

I believe the Aqua Formulas were the main reason I was able to finish the run with such high energy. I can only attribute this to them being able to very effectively keep my hydration levels throughout the race. I had weighed myself before and after the marathon and I had only lost 600 grams of body weight: this is remarkable, as a typical marathon runner may lose up to 5 kilos – most of it body water.[1]

To further convince me of the effectiveness of the Aqua Formulas, the day after the marathon I flew to a conference in Las Vegas, a 20 hour stop broken only by brief stops in Auckland and LA. No matter how well I pulled up after the marathon, I was concerned about the potential for lactic acid build up during the flight, and very painful stiffening of my muscles. I had noticed all through the training that I hadn’t really had trouble with this, even on the days following my long distance runs which had meant 4-5 hours os constant exertion. However I fully expected to be in agonising pain with the stiffness and deep soreness one feels after intense exercise such as the marathon. To my great surprise and pleasure, I got off the plane in Las Vegas and went for a run the following day, just to turn my legs over, and found that I had no pain at all.

From my scientific background, I found these outcomes fascinating: my ability to overcome “hitting the wall”, my increased time for the last kilometre of the race, my unbelievable recovery from the marathon itself, and then no pain after 20 hours of flight, when even the most rested person can feel stiff and sore after such a trip. My only logical conclusion is that this was an extraordinary example of how well the Aqua Formulas contribute to and maintain a high level hydration, and how effectively they stimulate the clearance metabolic waste products.

I was thus keen to see the Aqua Formulas being made more available. After discussions with Leonie, Aqua ConneXions (now Wild Medicine) was born. I often feel like the shaver man who “liked the product so much he bought the company” except in this case there was no company until we created it. But I believed, without necessarily being able to scientifically “pigeonhole” them, that the Aqua Formulas have a very important role to play in our health, both inpidually and on a global scale. Hydration is vital for every biochemical process in the body from brain function and skin condition to digestion and elimination.

DRINKING WATER IS NOT ENOUGH

It became important to Leonie and myself to understand how and why they work, then to set about not only making the available to others, but also educating them about the importance of hydration. We wanted to shout to the world that simply drinking water is not enough!Proper hydration, on a cellular level, is imperative to our whole health and wellbeing.

Some 6 months after Wild Medicine was formed I left my position as a laboratory head at the Baker Medical Institute in Melbourne. I ended a ten year career in conventional science to pursue the issue of hydration via research, product development and getting the message to the world. the journey since then has been endlessly fascinating, very challenging and periodically frustrating – but we are committed, and with commitment comes satisfaction.

The science of hydration is in its infancy, as a search of the scientific literature will show. Very few biochemists have specifically asked questions about cellular hydration – despite the fact that water is the single most important nutrient for cells and biological systems in general. Perhaps this very ubiquity is what leads to the issue of cellular water being overlooked so comprehensively. Of course what is so important about cellular water is not its mere presence or absence but the rates at which it moves within the system. for instance, water influx rates are the limiting variable in the uptake of nutrients in cells. [2] These nutrients include oxygen and glucose – the essentials for cellular respiration. They also include virtually every other water soluble nutrient and , because they travel in tandem with lipid (the fat particles found in blood serum), most lipid – or fat soluble nutrients as well. Clearance rates of metabolic waste products are dependant on the rate of water outflow, so any improvement in the rate of water outflow will result in an improvement in the speed and extent to which metabolic wastes are cleared.

The thirst reflex helps control cellular hydration. We so often respond to this reflex inappropriately, either consuming fluids other than water, or we eat food. A common result is a dehydrated inpidual who reports never feeling thirsty.

The movement of tides is an apt analogy. The tide of cellular water carries in nutrients and fuels, the ebbing tide washes out the waste products. Of course in the cell these two processes are occurring simultaneously and are mediated by a variety of mechanisms. One of our research projects is to determine which of these process the Aqua Formulas affect. The water transport processes are both active[3] and passive[4]. There are specific water channel molecules that act like pores in cell membranes. Some of these are simply able to be opened and closed and allow water to move passively down osmotic gradients. Others are driven by molecular pumps and are used to move water and dissolved species such as electrolytes and other entities of small molecular weight against osmotic gradients. Still others are water specific and pump water into, and out of cells to satisfy many, as yet unknown, requirements. It is via these pumps that water exhibits a set of characteristics that are more akin to a hormone than a simple molecule.

In one of the only reviews in the scientific literature of the effects of cellular hydration on cell function, Dieter Haussinger of the Heinrich Heine University in Dusseldorf has stated, “Most importantly, small fluctuations of cell hydration, i.e. of cell volume, act as a separate and potent signal for cellular metabolism and gene expression.[5] In the studies of Haussinger’s group, in which cultured rat liver cells (hepatocytes) are used as the experimental model system, they have shown that under the influence of a range of factors, including peptide hormones, simple molecules and ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate – the cells’ “energy currency”), the cultured hepatocytes lose water and go into a catabolic state, that is, their tissue starts breaking down. When the same cells are exposed to amino acids, insulin and a range of drugs they gain water and move to an anabolic state, that is, they start building up their cell structures. It was previously thought that these various factors caused the catabolic or anabolic states directly, but Haussinger et al. have shown that it is the change in hydration state, not the direct effect of the various factors, that controls the anabolic/catabolic switch.[6] This has important implications for our understanding of the hydration state as it would appear that it is the hydration state itself that is critical – even though it may also be influenced by a wide variety of other factors, including environmental, emotional, and nutritional states.

The Aqua Formulas, by acting directly to raise the hydration state of the cell, can quickly switch catabolic metabolism and to anabolic and thus reverse call degradative processes. When coupled with the direct effects of increasing uptake of nutrients and assisting with clearance of toxins there is significant potential for positive effects on cells and therefore tissues in both normal and pathological states.

In a holistic view of the body there is another component to the control of hydration state and that is the thirst reflex. This has been well studied and much is known about the neuroendrocrinoloy and neuroanatomy of the reflex are.[7] We know that drinking occurs when a decreased water fraction in the cerebrospinal fluid is sensed by one of the periventricular organs – the organum vasculosum of the lateral terminalis or OVLT for short. The OVLT sends messages to behavioural centres to stimulate the inpidual (or animal) to seek water and drink. This assumes that there is access to water.

PROBLEMS OF NOT DRINKING WATER

Unfortunately in our modern world we so often respond to this reflex activation inappropriately. We either consume fluids other than water – many of which (such as contain caffeine, alcohol or excess sugar) are actually dehydrating – or we eat food. This leads to several problems. First, consumed food must be digested, requiring the secretion of gastric and other digestive fluids. These digestive fluids contain a large fraction of water, which is temporarily unavailable to the rest of the body, and thus this secretion serves to further dehydrate the organism. Second, the repetitive use of an inappropriate response (either food, or fluids other than water) serves to downgrade the reflex.

We have a powerful ability to suppress “noise” in any response system; it not only requires a few instances of inappropriate response for a reflex to be treated as “noise” and effectively ignored. This results in the common state where a dehydrated inpidual reports that they never get thirsty. Less commonly the ignored reflex are will open without feedback inhibition. When this occurs, the inpidual has an insatiable thirst, and is always drinking. All too often, however, the fluids consumed are those that exacerbate the problem.

To address the issue of resetting the thirst reflex the Aqua Formulas contain components including Flower Essences and homoeopathics (as well as those of the core technology) and these appear to reset the thirst reflex. Thus two often-reported consequences of the use of the Formulas are, on the one hand, the activation of thirst in an inpidual who has not experienced thirst, often for years, and on the other, the control of unsatisfied thirst.

The long term biological effects of less than optimal hydration are only just starting to be investigated. There are scant publications on this topic but one paper published in 1981, suggests that in the last decades of life losses in body water (up to 5 litres over 10 years in men of 80 years of age) showed the best correlation with decreased function and increased morbidity.[8] This alone deserves research attention.

In the 5 years that the Aqua Formulas have been available we have had many inpiduals and practitioners who have made use of the Formulas with success. One of those, John Coleman, wrote an article in the previous issue of persity, on his studies of Parkinson’s Disease. [9] John’s protocol has used the Aqua Formulas, together with Bowen Technique, to effect healing in Parkinson’s sufferers, including himself. We worked closely with John in the refinement of the use of the Formulas in his protocol and would be happy to do likewise with other practitioners with specific research interests. We are also planning a series if research studies to further elucidate the mechanism of action of the Formulas, in part to validate their use but, more importantly, to use them as a tool to improve our understanding of this little-studied area of biology – cellular hydration.

The movement of tides is an apt analogy. The tide of cellular water carries in nutrients and fuels, the ebbing tide washes out the waste products. It is not the mere presence of water in the body which is important, but the rates at which it moves in and out of cells.

The task we set ourselves is enormous, and has only just begun, but I feel passionate about how important hydration is. I’m excited about what this technology has the potential to do in any situation where hydration is compromised. Most, if not all, people who read this are suffering some degree of dehydration and their health is being affected.

Virtually every athlete we have spoken to and tested exhibits signs of dehydration, the improvements in performance and recovery following even short periods on the Formulas are often surprisingly large. The Aqua Hydration technology can help solve these problems and I’m proud to be part of the solution (no pun intended).

Dr Jaroslav Boublik

[1] Cade, R., Packer, D., Zauner, C.; Kaufmann, D., Peterson, J., Mars, D., Privette, M., Hommes, N., Fregly. M.J., & Rogers, J., “Marathon running: physiological and chemical changes accompanying late race functional deterioration”. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 1992, Vol. 65, No. 6, pp. 485-91.

[2] Zeulbea, T., Molecular Mehanisms of Water Transport, Springer, New York, 1996, pp. 46-47.

[3] Ibid, pp. 57-69.

[4] Ibid, pp.27-46

[5] Haussinger, D.; “The role of cellular hydration in the regulation of cell function”, Biochemistry Journal, No. 3:3, 1996, pp. 697-710.

[6] Stoll, B.; Cerok, W., Lang, F. & Haussinger, D., “Liver cell volume and protein synthesis”, Biochemistry Journal, No. 287, 1992, pp. 217-22.

[7] Greenleaf, J. E. & Mortimoto, T., “Mechanisms controlling fluid ingestion: thirst and drinking”, in Buskirk, E. R. & Puhl, S. M. (ed.), Body Fluid Balance, CRC Press, Boca Ratoa, 1996, pp. 3-17.

[8] Steen, B., Lundgren, B. K., & Isakson, B., “ Body water in the elderly”, The Lancet, Jan. 12, 1985, p. 108.

[9] Coleman, J., “Returning to Stillness”, persity, Vol. 2, No. 2, June-Aug 2000, pp. 20-27.

( Posted in: Hydration Equation )

The Golden Age - Hydration Equation

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

Stressed? Tired? Putting on weight? Suffering from heartburn, backache, high blood pressure? Drinking more water could help, but is this the whole story…?
By Dr Jaroslav Boublik

We all know that we should consume at least two to three litres of fluid each day. While this is important, we must question whether this fluid is penetrating far enough to provide nutrients to all the cells and organs throughout the body.

The core issue at question here is hydration: the body’s ability to utilise and manage water at a cellular level.

While you might consume enough fluid over the course of the day, it will only be effective if it is reaching the required targets – the tissues of the body. Hydration is not only about supplying the body with fluid, it is also about making sure the fluid reaches the necessary organs and cells to promote proper function. Good hydration during the stages of life will prevent visible aging, which occurs when the largest organ in the body (the skin) becomes regularly dehydrated.

Hydration can be tested by pinching the skin on the back of your hand. If it springs back to its original shape, chances are your hydration is satisfactory. If a small ridge remains for a few seconds you may be lacking fluid.

A major reason for poor hydration as get older is the gradual decline of the thirst mechanism in the brain. When we are young and get thirsty, there is no stopping us when we want a drink. However, over time by ignoring the signal or responding to the signal for fluid with food or dehydrating drinks (such as coffee or alcohol) the signal will decline. For most people this will occur as early as their teenage years.

Therefore, the issue becomes not how much fluid we intake but how well the uptake of that fluid occurs. By improving uptake the water will reach all cells in the body and provide the twin benefits of supplying nutrients to the individual cells and flushing the cells clear of toxins which may have built up.

This is what is known as long path hydration and short path hydration and it differs from the short path hydration common in most people in several essential ways.

Short path hydration means the fluid will follow a path from the mouth, to the stomach, into the small intestines, into the circulation, into the kidneys, into the bladder and out of the body. This process will actually tend to stress the body, particularly the kidneys, rather than assist the hydration of tissues.

Long path hydration means the fluid will follow a similar path to the circulation, but will then flow into organs and tissues before flowing into the cells.

Recently our company, Wild Medicine Pty Ltd - developed specific technology that promotes this pathway of correct long path hydration. The core technology - which has since been patented - contains homeopathic dilutions of several herbs, combined as a concentrate. This concentrate is added to a drink to promote cellular uptake of fluid.

However there are some good simple techniques that, when used daily, will also assist fluid uptake. The best is a combination of apple juice and water. Apple juice contains a lot of fructose – a key sugar which opens pathways for water to infiltrate cells. Another good vehicle for hydration, which may surprise most people is cola, diluted 1-1 with water. This is used by a lot of athletes because the caffeine, at a diluted level, will help the body uptake water. Remember however, that while these approaches will assist in meeting immediate hydration needs, they will not upgrade hydration in the same way that herbal or homeopathic formulas can.

Other soft drinks have other common sugars which, while not quite as good as fructose, will improve the uptake when diluted with water.

If the body is lacking electrolytes - for instance after an extended period of exercise - then the plethora of sports drinks play their role. Again they are their most effective when diluted with water. However it is also important to monitor electrolyte levels. Those who tend to perspire a lot may require a lot more electrolytes than someone who did the same amount of exercise but didn’t perspire as much.

Hydration is a much overlooked issue in managing our wellness. The fact that water acts as the most basic level of metabolism should be a clue to the importance of hydration as a component in any holistic healthcare regimen. But simply drinking water is not enough…

Based on an article originally published in Women’s Fitness Magazine.

Hydration Solutions for Everyday Health

The best: Apple juice and water, plus The Aqua Hydration Formulas.

Second choice: Apple juice and water

Third choice: Other non-citrus juices and water

Next: Pure spring water and mineral water, various soft drink diluted with water

Finally: Concentrated sports drinks

Water Quality for Wellness

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

It is an essential component of all living things. It is a force that shapes the earth. It is a rarity in the universe yet abundant on this blue planet Earth. It is water – the key to life.

Unfortunately the importance of water for our day-to-day wellness is so often overlooked. Maybe it’s because it is so ubiquitous and we take it for granted. Maybe it’s because so many of us rarely drink plain water. Maybe because in this high tech world the sheer simplicity of just drinking more and better water is anathema to most people. In this article I want to consider some of the important questions that are so often asked about water. I’m sure you will see that there is more to water than our everyday experience would have us believe.

Why does the body need water?

Water has several roles in the human body. It gives structure and form to cells and tissues. It provides the medium for movement of heat from the core of the body to the surface. It is the matrix within which occurs all of the biochemical reactions that together make up cellular metabolism. Last, it is the transport mechanism for all internal movements of all nutrients and biomolecules, exchange of nutrients between the environment and cells and clearance of waste products. Therefore supplying the body with sufficient high quality water to satisfy all of those requirements should be the goal. The process of providing water to all levels of metabolism from the gastrointestinal tract to the circulation, into tissues and cells and then out of the body via various excretion pathways is called hydration. Optimal hydration requires adequate uptake, not just intake, of water. But how much and what kind of water?

How much should we drink?

How much of it should we drink? Much has been said about the need to drink some set number of “glasses of water” a day. Articles have been published where that number is 12 and in a recent article from the United States, a medical professional said the number is zero as we get all the water we need from the food we eat! The usual standard is 8, but lets consider where this figure comes from. The average (adult but not elderly) 120lb/55kg female is composed of about 70lb/32kg of water. For a 155lb/70kg male that figure is 90lb/42 kg. A component of that water is exchanged each day and if that woman or man is well but sedentary that component is about 4.2-4.8 pints/2- 2.5 litres and 6.3-7.4 pints / 3-3.5 litres respectively. That means this amount of water is excreted each day: 60% in urine, 5 per cent in faeces, 5% in basal sweating and 30% in exhaled air. That water must be replaced and that will be replaced and that will come as follows: 10% from the burning of carbohydrate fuel, 30% from ingested food and 60% from ingested fluids.

On these figures it would appear that the baseline requirement is more like 5 glasses, but this is baseline only. The figures will all vary according to factors including the amount of exercise (exercise increases respiration, metabolism and sweating), the ambient temperature (the hotter it gets the more you sweat), humidity (the more humid it is, the less water you expire) and several other factors. In addition it has been shown in several studies that many factors quickly increase the kidney’s requirement for water to facilitate clearance of waste products including use of prescription and recreational drugs (including caffeine), exercise and exposure to environmental toxins. So we quickly get back to the eight glasses a day as a good rule of thumb. Taking all of this into consideration leads towards supporting 8 glasses a day as a good rule of thumb.

What is even better, however, is to let the body itself set the correct intake on a moment to moment basis by maintaining an accurate and effective thirst reflex. Put simply, the thirst reflex is the mechanism by which our body regulates its water intake. The accuracy of the reflex is easily damaged, but attention to appropriate intake of water over the long term will tend to maintain the integrity of the reflex and ensure that it’s an effective regulator of water intake.

How important is the purity of the water we should drink?

While water is on face value a simple molecule, composed of one oxygen atom and bound with two hydrogen atoms (hence “H2O”), it is in fact one of the most complex and remarkable compounds in nature. Water possesses many properties that, given its simple structure, are unexpected. Science knows much about water and volumes have been written about its importance in chemistry, physics, biology, geology, botany and economics and yet there are mysteries about water that are only now being unravelled.

Water is a difficult substance to obtain in its pure form, and that arises from one of water’s important characteristics – the tendency to form chains, clusters and higher order structures. In liquid water, the individual H2O molecules associate to form clusters in sizes ranging from six to hundreds of molecules. This is because the hydrogen atoms attach to the oxygen atoms in a precise arrangement with the two hydrogens at 107° to each other – looking rather like a set of Mickey Mouse ears. This arrangement means that, while each water molecule is electrically neutral (with the singly positive hydrogens neutralising the doubly negative oxygen) there is an uneven charge distribution on the water molecule. This gives a slight negative charge in the region of the oxygen and a slight positive charge on the side nearest the two hydrogens. This uneven charge distribution allows one of the wonders of nature – the hydrogen bond – to occur.

Hydrogen bonds arise from the slight positive charge on one water molecule attracting the slight negative charge on another and allow chains, networks and even three-dimensional lattices to form. The hydrogen bonds hold water together in structures giving rise to characteristics such as surface tension and the ability of water to wrap around other molecules in “hydration sheaths”. Water can be thought of as a “liquid crystal” and just as solid crystals can trap other atoms so water can lock impurities into cages from which they are difficult to break free. These structures can also hold electrical charge in the form of isolated ions, and are also responsible for many of the important but unexpected characteristics of water such as its ability to reduce density upon solidification resulting in solid ice floating on liquid water.

In the next part of this article we will look at how we can purify water and what impact that can have on its energetic properties.

Note: Some of the material presented in this article have been published previously by the author in Diversity – the Journal of the Australian Complementary Health Association Vol 2 No 7, pp 2-9 2002.

By Dr Jaroslav Boublik
B.Sc. (Hons), Ph.D., MRACI, C.Chem., AACNEM

References
Taylor, P.N., Wolinsky, I., and Klimis, D.J., “Water in Exercise and Sport” in Macroelements, Water and Electrolytes in Sports Nutrition, (Ed: Driskell, J.A. and Wolinsky, I.), CRC Press, Boca Ratn, 1999 pp 93-108.

Carey, B., Eight glasses a day? Rubbish, The Age, 30th April, 2001, “Today”, p 4.

Grenleaf, J.E. and Morimoto, T., “Mechanisms Controlling Fluid Ingestion – Thirst & Drinking” in Body Fluid Balance (Ed: Buskirk, E.R. and Puhl, S.M.), CRC Press, Boca Raton, 1996.

Coates, C., Living Energies, Gateway Books, Bath, 1996, pp 108-111.

Lehninger, A.L., Biochemistry Worth, New York, pp 39-43.

Ibid, pp 44-51.

Natural Health Supplement Guide - What is Hydration

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

Hydration is a term used to describe your body’s ability to manage water. This means water management at every level down to the individual cells. Correct hydration is dependant on cellular uptake of water, not simply whole body intake of water. Drinking only water is not sufficient to ensure optimal hydration.

If you are well hydrated your body will take the water you drink (and eat as part of your food) and distribute it correctly to all the cells in your body that need it, taking with the water all the essential nutrients of those cells. The well hydrated body is also able to use this cellular water to wash out waste products and toxins from cells and deliver them to the organs of excretion. In a poorly hydrated body these processes will be sluggish or absent and nutrients will be unavailable to the cells, and waste products will build up to toxic levels. Hydration is one of the most fundamental processes in a healthy body, yet it has received very little attention by the biomedical research community and by the population at large.

In this chapter we will tell you about the dynamics of the hydration process, look at its implications in health and disease and show you how to improve your hydration state.

How important is water?

Water is the most important nutrient that the body uses. It is correctly thought of as a nutrient as it is a limiting factor in many, if not all, biochemical processes. The correct metabolism of all other nutrients depends on the availability of sufficient water for correct biochemistry to occur. The macronutrients (nutrients required in relatively large amounts on a daily basis) protein, carbohydrate and fat all require water for their correct assimilation and utilisation. All micronutrients (nutrients required in smaller amounts or less frequently) including vitamins and minerals require water for correct uptake and distribution.

The water pathway

It may be useful for us to have a look at what happens to water, and other nutrients, as they enter the body. The first process is digestion. The digestive process is not required for plain water, but every other food or drink that is ingested starts the digestive process. This process depends on the secretion of gastric juices in the stomach and other digestive juices in the small intestine. These juices are largely composed of water, so this initial step of digestion actually requires the body to secrete a considerable quantity of water.

In a poorly hydrated individual, this may compromise an already stressed system. This is especially important in athletes where the temporary loss of circulating water can be critical. Many individuals who experience digestive difficulties may see rapid improvements following some attention to improved hydration. If sufficient water is available, the digestive process continues until the fully digested food finds its way into the part of the small intestine where uptake of nutrients occurs. Here, water again plays its part, as all nutrients are wrapped in a cocoon of water so they can be transported out of the gastrointestinal tract and into the circulation, in some cases this occurs via diffusion – the dissolved nutrient simply moves through the cells of the gut and into surrounding small blood vessels. In other cases there are specific pumps that select a particular nutrient and actively moves it to the circulation where it is picked up by transport mechanisms so that it finds its correct destination. These processes all depend on the correct amounts of water being available at all times and will quickly falter in a dehydrated individual.

The second process is distribution via the circulation. At this point the water from the gut, laden with nutrients, becomes circulating water, now a component of the blood’s plasma. This circulating water will take the dissolved nutrients and the specific transporters to the right cell for the nutrients to be used to build new cells, repair damaged cells, nourish existing cells and to create energy and cell products like hormones, electrical activity or immune components. The water, having entered the specific cell to carry its cargo then leaves the cells, this time carrying a load of waste products or toxins. This is the third and last part of the process – excretion. This cargo of waste product is transported to the organs or excretion (kidneys, gut, skin and lungs) where the waste products are packaged and delivered back to the outside world.

In someone whose hydration is compromised these transport processes are limited and the whole system becomes compromised. There are many reasons this transport cascade fails but the most common reason is that the transport medium – water – is not present in sufficient amount. This is the metabolic state usually known as dehydration. In a dehydrated individual any available water follows a much shorter path and does not facilitate the transport of nutrients or clearance of waste products. Long term or chronic dehydration, even to only a small extent, steadily downgrades the nutrient transport system and progressively degrades the body.

Hydration and thirst

Dehydration also downgrades another system – the thirst reflex. Paradoxically long-term dehydration has the effect of decreasing our sensitivity to the very system that should notify us that all is not right. The reason is that the thirst reflex is a complex behavioural circuit and is actively filtered by our higher brain functions. To understand this, consider the situation where you are at a cocktail party. You are standing speaking to someone and you are able to concentrate on what they are saying without any difficulty because you are able to filter out all of the background noise. Now a few metres away someone says your name and even though you have no idea what else they are saying, you hear your name loud and clear above the noise. This is the filter at work. Normally the background noise is filtered out but when it contains an important piece of information, in this example your name, the filter lets that information get through.

It turns out that the thirst reflex is also filtered. When all is well, like when we are young and well hydrated, the message gets through the filter every time because the filter knows the message to drink is an important one. As we grow older (and these days this can begin at a young age) we start to respond to the message to drink with actions that don’t actually do much to hydrate the system. Often we drink soft drinks or milk. Later in life it’s caffeinated soft drinks, tea, coffee and alcoholic beverages. These drinks don’t do much for our immediate hydration state, because unlike water, they need to be digested or they act as diuretics and actually dehydrate us. The consequence of this is that the message to drink begins to be filtered because, like the boy who cried wolf, our thirst reflex is not being heard. Ultimately the message can be lost altogether and often the profoundly dehydrated individuals will report that they are never thirsty (this isn’t always the case as some dehydrated people speak of the unquenchable thirst – the flip side of the same coin). One added consequence of the lost thirst reflex is that many people begin to confuse the thirst message with the huger message. What is really a message to drink finds an answer in eating food. We conjecture that at least with some people their tendency to overeat is a consequence of a damaged thirst reflex.

Resetting the reflex is not an easy process and requires attention to drinking water whenever the vaguest thirst is perceived as this will serve to strengthen the reflex. There are specific remedies designed to reset the reflex that can help with this also.

What should I drink and how much?

As you can see from what we have discussed about hydration, water has a special place in the list of what we should drink. Because it meeds no processing to be taken up, water is unique and in most cases results in the most rapid improvements in hydration. There are however many other beverages to choose from and all have their place.

The choice of what kind of water to drink is quite large. There is good scientific evidence to support the choice of the purest water that is available. This may be bottled, filtered from a pristine local source or even, depending on where you live, out of the tap. The danger represented by the many potential contaminants of water will not be reviewed in detail here but we do know that many of the common contaminants in tap waters and water from unprotected sources pose health risks and have a direct effect n the hydration process. Another factor, though not so well defined in strict scientific terms, is that of “life-force”. The volume of research into this important factor is significant and the general finding is that water that exhibits good “life-force” is more bioavailable and supports the various steps of the hydration cascade better. This kind of water, which finds its origins in naturally occurring water in mountain streams or from underground sources has recently been mimicked by various techniques and is now available commercially in bottled form and via filter units that can be installed next to your kitchen tap. The evidence that these waters have more to offer than conventional purified water is compelling and well worth investigation.

The range of other drinks that one can choose from is vast and we don’t plan to review them all in detail here. The ability of a given drink to improve hydration is dependant very much on the hydration state of the individual concerned. For example, the appropriate use of a sports drink by a well hydrated sportsperson during training or competition will give a very much different result to the use of the same drink by a dehydrated competitor. As another example, the use of a caffeined beverage (coffee or soft drink) by a dehydrated individual as a 3 o’clock in the afternoon pick-me-up will often result in a greater degree of dehydration (with the attendant tiredness) than if that drink was had with a glass or two of water on a regular basis.

The real problem with selecting what to drink, apart from water, is that it is a chicken-and-the-egg problem with many drinks acting to perpetuate the current dehydrated state of the individual. How then does one break the dehydration cycle? There are two approaches. The first is to use the water co-transporter fructose, with abundant water to reactivate the hydration mechanism. Fortunately fructose is available in abundance in apple and pear juices and when these juices (preferably in organic unfiltered form) are diluted 1:2 or 1:3 with purified water and sipped throughout the day they will switch hydration mechanisms back on to a significant extent. Sucrose also works (as it is broken down to fructose and glucose in the gut) and so a very diluted soft drink can be used if apple or pear juices are not available.

The second approach is to use herbal and homeopathic remedies to reactivate the hydration mechanisms in a more long-term way. These remedies can be simple herbs which have a known hydrating effect or a specialised combination of remedies that have been assembled for this exact purpose. Called the “Aqua Hydration Formulas” these have been developed here in Australia. They are taken morning and night in the apple juice/water mixture and there are even different formulas for women and men because their hydration mechanisms are subtly different.

As to the question of how much to drink, there has been much said about the need to drink X glasses (250ml) of water a day. We have seen articles where that X is 12 and a recent article by a medical professional from the United States who said X is zero as we get all the water we need from the food we eat! The standard is 8 but where this came from is anyone’s guess. The facts are that the average (adult but not elderly) 55kg female is composed of about 32kg of water. A component of that water is exchanged each day and if that woman is well but sedentary that component is about 2-to-2.5 litres. That means this amount of water is excreted each day: 60 per cent in urine, 5 per cent in faeces, 5 per cent in basal sweating and 30 per cent in exhaled air. That water must be replaced and that will be replaced and that will come as follows: 10 per cent from the burning of carbohydrate fuel, 30 per cent from ingested food and 60 per cent from ingested fluids. So you can see that the baseline requirement is more like five glasses, but this is baseline only. These figures will all vary according to factors including the amount of exercise (exercise increases respiration, metabolism and sweating), the ambient temperature (the hotter it gets the more you sweat), humidity (the more humid it is, the less water you expire) and so on. In addition it has been shown in several studies that many factors quickly increase the kidney’s requirement for water to facilitate clearance of waste products including use of prescription and recreational drugs (including caffeine), exercise and exposure to environmental toxins. So we quickly get back to the eight glasses a day as a good rule of thumb. What is even better, however, is to let the body itself set the correct intake on a moment-to-moment basis by maintaining an accurate and effective thirst reflex.

What will happen when I become well hydrated?

The well-hydrated individual will not become a super-hero overnight but improvements in digestion, energy levels, sleeping patterns, skin quality, recovery from illness and physical exertion and clarity of thought are often reported. Menstrual and menopausal symptoms often reduce and allergies and sensitivities become less troublesome. Athletic performance is critically dependant on hydration not just because of its role in metabolism but because water is the basis of our temperature control mechanisms.

Because hydration is such a requisite component of cellular metabolism, any improvement in someone who is compromised will result in a sequence of changes that will result overall in an improvement of wellness.

A final word

Hydration is the most important, yet most commonly overlooked component of a holistic approach to wellness. Water is at the very basis of the functioning of our cells and our cells make up our tissues and organs. Keeping well-hydrated means making sure that water is available in abundance, moving where it needs to move and sustaining the river of life.

Womens Fitness & Sport - Hydration

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

Hydration is used to describe your body’s ability to manage water. This means water management at every level down to the individual cells. Correct hydration is dependant of cellular uptake of water, not simply whole body intake of water. Drinking only water is not sufficient to ensure optimal hydration.

If you are well hydrated your body will take the water you drink and distribute it correctly to all the cells in the body that need it, taking with the water all the essential nutrients for those cells. The well hydrated body is also able to use this cellular water to wash out waste products and toxins from the cells and deliver them to the organs of excretion. In a poorly hydrated body, these processes will be sluggish or absent, nutrients will be available to the cells and waste products will build up to toxic levels.

Hydration is one of the most fundamental processes in a healthy body, yet it has received very little attention by the biomedical research community and the general population.

How important is water?

Water is the most important nutrient that the body uses. It is correctly thought of as a nutrient as it is a limiting factor in many, if not all, biochemical processes. The correct metabolism of all other nutrients depends on the availability of sufficient water for correct biochemistry to occur. The macronutrients (nutrients required in large amounts on a daily basis) protein, carbohydrate and fat all require water for their correct assimilation and utilisation. All micronutrients (nutrients required in smaller amount or less frequently) including vitamins and minerals require water for correct uptake and distribution.

Hydration and Thirst

The consequence of this is that the message to drink begins to be filtered because, like the boy who cried wolf, our thirst reflex is not being heard. Ultimately the message can be lost altogether and often the profoundly dehydrated individuals will report that they are never thirsty (this isn’t always the case as some dehydrated people speak of the unquenchable thirst – the flip side of the same coin). One added consequence of the lost thirst reflex is that many people begin to confuse the thirst message with the hunger message. What is really a message to drink finds an answer in eating food. Resetting the reflex is not an easy process and requires attention to drinking water whenever the vaguest thirst is perceived, as this will serve to strengthen the reflex.

What should I drink and how much?

As you can see about what we have discussed about hydration, water has a special place in the list of what we should drink. Because it needs no processing to be taken, water is unique and in most cases results in the most rapid improvements in hydration. There are however many other beverages to choose from and all have their place.

The kind of water, which finds its origins in naturally occurring water in mountain streams or from underground sources, has recently been mimicked by various techniques and is now available commercially in bottled form via filter units that can be installed next to your kitchen tap. The evidence that these waters have more to offer than conventional purified water is compelling and well worth investigation.

What will happen when I become well hydrated?

The well hydrated individual will not become a superhero overnight but improvement in digestion, energy levels, sleeping patterns, skin quality, recover from illness and physical exertion and clarity of thought are often reported. Menstrual and menopausal symptoms often reduce allergies and sensitivities become less troublesome. Athletic performance is critically dependent on hydration not just because of its role in metabolism but because water is the basis of our temperature control mechanisms.

A final word

Hydration is the most important, yet most commonly overlooked, component of a holistic approach to wellness. Water is at the very basis of the functioning of our cells and our cells make up our tissues and organs. Keeping well hydrated means making sure that water is available in abundance, moving where it needs to move and sustaining the river of life.

Women's Fitness - The Hydration Equation

Submitted by: 10-Sep-2015

We all know that we should consume at least two to three litres of fluid each day. While this is important, we must question whether this fluid is penetrating far enough to provide nutrients to all the cells and organs throughout the body. The core issue here is hydration – the body’s ability to utilise and manage water at a cellular level.

While you might consume enough fluid over the course of the day, it will only be effective if it is reaching the required targets – the tissues of the body. Personally, I first discovered a problem with hydration when I was unable to keep water on board while training for a marathon. In other words the fluids I was consuming were going through me and not into me. The hydration of the body during sport is an area that has become more and more important over the years. Heat stroke and the need for a scientific approach to hydration made front page news in 1990 when Sydney rugby league prop spent 20 days in a come. Heeding the warning signs, the Australian Football League established protocols for dealing with proper hydration and several other sporting codes have since followed suit.

Hydration is not only about supplying the body with fluid, it is also about making sure the fluid reaches the necessary organs and cells to promote proper function. However it is not just the domain of the elite athlete. Good hydration during the early stages of life will prevent visible aging, which occurs when the largest organ in the body (the skin) becomes regularly dehydrated.

Hydration can be tested by pinching the skin on the back of your hand. If it springs back to its original shape, chances are your hydration is satisfactory. If a small ridge remains for a few seconds you may be lacking fluid.

A major reason for poor hydration as get older is the gradual decline of the thirst mechanism in the brain. When we are young and get thirsty, there is no stopping us when we want a drink. However, over time by ignoring the signal or responding to the signal for fluid with food or dehydrating drinks (such as coffee or alcohol) the signal will decline. For most people this will occur as early as their teenage years.

Therefore the issue becomes not how much fluid we intake but how well the uptake of that fluid occurs. By improving uptake the water will reach all cells in the body and provide the twin benefits of supplying nutrients to the individual cells and flushing the ccells clear of toxins which may have built up.

This is what is known as long path hydration and short path hydration.

Short path hydration means the fluid will follow a path from the mouth, to the stomach, into the small intestines, into the circulation, into the kidneys, into the bladder and out of the body. This process will actually tend to stress the body, particularly the kidneys, rather than assist the hydration of tissues.

Long path hydration means the fluid will follow a similar path to the circulation, but will then flow into organs and tissues before flowing into the cells.

Recently our company, AquaConneXions has developed specific technology that promotes the pathway of correct long path hydration. The core technology, which has since been patented, contains homeopathic dilutions of several herbs, combined as a concentrate. This concentrate is added to a drink to promote cellular uptake of fluid.

However there are some good simple techniques that, when used daily, will also assist fluid uptake. The best is a combination of apple juice and water. Apple juice contains a lot of fructose – a key sugar which opens pathways for water to infiltrate cells. Another good vehicle for hydration, which may surprise most people is cola, diluted 1-1 with water. This is used by a lot of athletes because the caffeine, at a diluted level, will help the body uptake water.

Other soft drinks have common sugars, which, while not quite as good as fructose, will improve the uptake when diluted with water.

If the body is lacking electrolytes, for instance after an extended period of exercise, then the plethora of sports drinks play their role. Again they are their most effective when diluted with water.

However it is also important to monitor electrolyte levels. Those who tend to perspire a lot may require a lot more electrolytes than someone who did the same amount of exercise but didn’t perspire as much.

Hydration Solutions for Everyday Health

The best: Apple juice and water, plus herbal or homeopathic additions

Second choice: Apple juice and water

Third choice: Other non-citrus juices and water

Next: Pure spring water and mineral water, various soft drink diluted with water

Finally: Concentrated sports drinks

By Dr Jaroslav Boublik