ARE YOU SICK OR JUST THIRSTY?

Water has been called many things.. life, healer, rejuvenator, body feul among others. We all know how important water is to our bodies and yet many still ignore it. We can explore the glories of water in all it's forms and still some people will consider it irrelevant.

Did you know that water makes up to 75% of the fluids in our bodies and without it the body goes into turmoil?
I happen to come across a beautiful question somewhere on the internet, "are you sick or just thirsty?"

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Then it got me thinking... Don't we sometimes treat thirst as an illness?
What causes us to feel thirsty is the lack of water in our bodies. Our bodies are in a state of emergency...they are crying out like a dry plant in the middle of the desert praying to be showered🌧️. If this cry is not attended to, it leads to what's known as dehydration.

What is dehydration?
Dehydration is when more water and fluids leave the body compared to those that enter it.
This can lead to a series of symptoms that can easily pass as some sort of illness.
Scientists have found that there are 3 percentage levels of dehydration, each with it's own effects.

At 2% dehydration level, you don't feel good.
At 5%, your brain stops functioning
At 10%, you will drop dead.
I think at some point we have all experienced upto 2% dehydration level.

What inspired me to write this article is to prevent you from reaching 5% and going down all the way to 10%.

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We can all agree to disagree but some of the above symptoms are similar to symptoms of everyday diseases. Therefore, next time when you experience any of the above symptoms and you think of taking some medicine, why don't you first take one or two glasses of water?

A doctor friend of mine once told me, "sometimes when we give people medicine, the reason they get better is not because of the pills but because they have to take the pills with water."
Have you noticed that once a doctor gives you medicine, they will say, "Don't forget to drink alot of fluids-water and juices"
That alone tells you how important hydrating is, sick or not.

How important is water to our bodies?
-Helps us maximize our physical performance
-It affects energy levels and brain function
-Prevents headaches
-Relieves constipation
-Treats kidney stones
Prevents hungovers
-Aids weight loss

Effects of dehydration
-Heat injury
Your body cannot handle being under heat. You will be like a helpless plan left in the sun to dry.
-Constipation
-Urinary and kidney problems
-Seizures
-Headaches
-Low blood volume shock (hypovolemic shock)
-Brain damage
-Possible death

Interesting fact..."ALMOST EVERYTHING THAT GOES WRONG WITH OUR BODIES BEGINS WITH DEHYDRATION"
It's like planting a flower and not watering it daily. Do you honestly expect that same flower to flourish and grow healthy? Of course not.

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So treat your body like a growing plant, it needs water to grow.

With every problems comes a solution. And lucky for you, the solutions to dehydration are very simple.

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Fruits

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Milk or tea

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The most obvious one... drinking water regularly

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Hydrating solutions

As I conclude, I would like to share some beautiful quotes about water that I came across.

"We forget that the water cycle and life cycle are one" - Jacques Yves Cousteau

"If there is magic on this planet, it is contains in water" - Loren Eiseley

" Water is the driving force of all nature" -Leonardo da Vinci

REMINDER
Don't wait until you feel thirsty or hot to take that glass of water. Even for our ladies that want glowing skins or want to cut weight, you will be surprised at how much of a role water plays. 🥛🥤