Hi Everyone
just writing some stuff for a presentaion to a Carer's group and hoped you don't mind if I share this with you. Hydration is something I am passionate about, most of you probably already know this, so sorry if it bores you, just skip this post! love cathy


Everyone has heard that we need to drink water. Everyone knows we should drink two litres of the stuff daily. But does anyone really know why do we need to drink it?
I like many, have, from time to time drunk glasses of water after exercise or after a Hands on  treatment because I knew it was the right thing to do, but until I became a Bowen therapist, I never knew just how important the role of water was to my body.
Dehydration affects all parts of our bodies- muscle, tendons, connective tissue (facia) and bones. Most people are de-hydrated. We are not a society who drink water, rather we drink tea, coffee, coke, beer or if nothing else, cordial. Our kids are often brought up on cordial and soft drink and these are some of the very things that cause de-hydration. We consume large quantities of sugar, caffeine, tannin and alcohol which all have a de-hydrating effect. We have air-conditioners and heaters that de-hydrate us. How many of us have water on top of our heaters or in front of our air-conditioners? This helps alleviate the drying effects of using these appliances. Diet can be de-hydrating too. We eat so much processed (dead) food that de-hydrates our digestive system and many forget to eat fresh (live) fruit and vegetables, which contain water and essential nutrients.
Core dehydration can be responsible for all sorts of injury and illness. Most people are not sufficiently hydrated and we see this with kidney disease, PMT, Parkinson’s disease, MS, and of course broken bones to name a few. Having asthma and bronchitis can be because of dehydration of the upper respitory track. Broken bones in a fall can be because of dehydration. Just imagine drinking lots of water and your bones, muscles and tendons are hydrated- the same fall may not result in such severe injuries.
I often wonder if people with Osteoporosis have core de-hydration or patients with heart disease. The heart is a muscle, so needs to be hydrated.  It is a proven medical fact that people with Parkinson’s disease can achieve remarkable results with water and Bowen therapy, so if water can do so much for them, why not other illnesses?
So how do we get hydrated? We consume two litres of water a day. We keep a glass or bottle of water with us at all times and sip! We try and replace some of our cups of tea, coffee and alcohol with water instead. We eat more fresh fruit and vegetables and cut out a lot of the processed food. We try and warm up with exercise instead of sitting in front of a heater and if we do have heating of cooling, we have a bowl of water in front of it. We need to drink more water if we are drinking alcohol.
Don’t forget your animals! It is as important for them to be hydrated too. Animals seem to know when they need the water, unlike us and of course do not consume tea, coffee etc. A natural diet is even more important for them as the principles of processed food still apply. Make sure they have a constant, clean supply of water and keep them cool in summer. Older animals may need to have their water intake monitored to prevent de-hydration.
These things will become a way of life for you. It takes between 5-6 weeks for your body to become accustomed to the water. A common complaint is too frequent urination, but it is essential to persevere. What have you got to lose, but keeping healthy? In time you will even crave water when you find your body becoming dehydrated. Water is the ELIXIR OF YOUTH and you can enjoy all its benefits with a little effort.