WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT HYDRATING

New research confirms wisdom of ancient strategies.  Another reason to include more fresh vegetables and herbs in your diet and to purify your drinking/cooking water.  Staying hydrated does not equate with chugging water!

Excerpts from the book “Quench” by Dana Cohen, MD and Gina Bria, pgs 47-48

“…Water science at the molecular level has the scientific community abuzz, and it’s shaping our understanding of how water functions, and more relevant for you, it is the basis of Quench…..This new science reveals that the water in our cells is a different type of water:  the same kind of water we can find in plants.  We already know that water exists as a liquid, a gas, or a solid, but new findings are uncovering a fourth, gel-like state of water, just 10 percent more viscous than the liquid state.  This change in water phases takes place at the molecular level.  We can’t see the molecular change with our naked eye, but in this state, water hydrates more efficiently.  For you, it means you can drink less liquid, yet be more hydrated.”

“Some of our best clues about what foods hydrate effectively come from extreme environments where access to abundant water is limited.  Here is where we most see humans turning to foods to supplement their water sources and hydration needs….Archeological and forensic analysis of ancient pottery from Hualcayan in the High Andes show surprising evidence that stews were the staple form of hydration.  They included gelatins released by grains….heating starch grains in the presence of water breaks down the crystalline layers and causes the starches to gelatinize, or form a viscous complex with water.  These grain-released gelatins further enhanced the absorptive and therefore hydrating power of the cooking water found in stew….Indeed, these ancient strategies of changing the hydrating power of water by adding plants such as grains, herbs, seeds, or roots were deployed throughout the ages, on all continents.  Overwhelming evidence resides in ethnographic and medieval records showing plants were used for hydration and the purification of water.  Slow-cooked stews and pottages released more gelatin, changing the molecular structure of cooking liquid.  Beers and meads accomplished the same change through fermentation and were globally used strategies to further purify, or replace entirely, contaminated or tainted waters.”

Monica’s general recommendations for implementing this information:

~Since hydration is essential for weight loss and for boosting metabolic rate, Americans need to eat more fresh vegetables, fruits , herb teas, stews, soups, cooked whole grains such as millet, quinoa, brown rice (NOT more breads, crackers, pasta, and other baked flour products AND NOT bottled juices, sodas, and sweetened and/or caffeinated drinks).

~Herb teas, smoothies containing 1 tsp of ground flax or chia seeds, freshly made vegetable juice, fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut, apple cider vinegar and lemon added to drinking water will all assist in staying hydrated without chugging excess water.

~Need help working out the details for your individual needs?  Schedule a nutrition appointment with Monica.