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Health & Fitness

HEALTHY GIRL - Water

I like to think of water as a major life source, keeping one's body functioning as it should and sustaining one's energy.

Every morning I drink a tall glass of water with an Emergen-C packet or a tall glass of warm water with the juice from half a lemon to clear my sinuses and build up my immunity.  While packing my lunch I make sure to include three 16.9 ounce bottles of water and make it a point to drink all three before I leave the office. In the afternoon I have a cup of green tea and a cup of chamomile tea in the evening before bed.  I love water.

While I may be craving another cup of coffee, it is water, and not the aforementioned diuretic that would really energize me.  I once heard that if you feel thirsty, you are already past the point you should be.  Therefore, drinking water throughout the day – having a full glass by you like you keep your cell phone by you at all times – will help keep your body from crashing into an unhealthy zone.  I like to think of water as a major life source, keeping things moving and sustaining one’s energy.  After all, “A significant fraction of the human body is water,” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_water). 

A fellow fan, my aunt, and her husband make their own carbonated water which they mix with fruit juice for a fruit cocktail.  She has been known to drink so much water each day that her doctor was concerned she was throwing off her potassium level.  The reverse would be someone who does not care for water and would rather drink diet coke throughout the day.  Fortunately, most of the foods we consume contain a percentage of water, even cheese to my surprise.  Both examples are extreme; I think I might be somewhere in the middle.

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What I do not love is the thought that if I were to leave my plastic water bottles in my car for enough time to cause the temperature of the bottles to get warm, I could no longer drink from them.  While I am fairly selective about the news I hear, Sheryl Crow’s struggle with breast cancer was a story to which I paid attention.  A great debate transpired on the potential culpability of plastic water bottles - specifically what happens to them when the temperature of the bottle changes significantly enough to cause the release of chemicals from the plastic - and the development of her breast cancer.  While some believe this is inaccurate, I have chosen to stop leaving water bottles in my car and am now a bag lady with my lunch pail, water bottles, work bag, yoga mat, and my big purse; the water comes with me wherever I go.

When the contents of the plastic bottles have been consumed, I save them for a local man who collects them.  He has earned himself enough money to afford himself an apartment in South Pasadena.  I am continuously amazed by the tenacity of this older man who has figured out a way to do something to help me, recycle, and afford himself a place to live. 

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We are comprised of water – it is what keeps us going.  So, drink up and may you shine from the inside out.

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