Photo Credit: www.pixabay.com
I have been working on this blog for more than a week now and I’m glad it’s done, finally. This time I am still thinking whether I should wait for the result of my previous blog or to submit this for review without waiting to those important points coming from Ms. Hillary for me to be able to apply here and eventually obtain a bigger chance of getting a better ratings.
Anyhow to start with this brand new blog of mine, normally there are a lot of things that we human beings cannot live without. I am not referring to material things wherein we became dependent and that we feel that our day is incomplete without it. Like for example a cell phone or a credit card, but this is not what I am referring to, I am talking about those indispensable things that we need to be able to live. Like air, water and food.
Photo Credit: www.pixabay.com
Essentially people has 3 basic needs, food shelter and clothing, although we can pinpoint the most vital among the 3 that supports our life and that without it we will surely die in just a very short time.
Photo Credit: Google
The human body needs food to live. I mean all our body parts function well when being nourished, nurtured or fed. According to World Health Organization (WHO), a person can stay or live without food for 14 days only. Beyond that would mean death. And among the foods (solid and liquids) that we need to take every day, there is one very important that could lead to early death also if not being taken for a very short span of time. And this time I am talking about potable water.
Photo Credit: Google
Dependent on a person, people can live without water for only 3 days, but not with older people under a very hot climate where life expectancy without water is just a matter of hours. That means there is a very high possibility of death if we don’t drink water for 3 long days if not, signs of a serious health complications will be apparent as dehydration caused by lack of water may affect several organs of the body.
“This U.S. Forestry Service survival training guide suggests 3 days without water is a serious threat to survival.”
HOW LONG CAN HUMANS LAST WITHOUT WATER?
According to a nutritionist, the figure for survival is 48 hours without water and two weeks without food. Although such span of time varies on so many different factors. As I mentioned earlier elderly people have a shorter survival rate compared to younger ones. And those who are exposed to extreme heat may die ahead compared to those who are in a colder area. To sum it all, factors like shelter, heat and age of a person should be considered if we want to determine the survival rate of a particular person without drinking water.
Photo Credit: Google
Now according to WHO, 1 child dies every 21 second due to water related diseases. These are people who live in a place where water is very scarce and or the water is contaminated.
Photo Credit: Google
Moreover, according to studies, access to safe drinking water has improved over the last eras in almost every part of the world, but sad to say that roughly one billion people still lack access to safe water and over 2.5 billion lack access to acceptable sanitation. Such figure is not a joke and when it persists over a longer time we will expect more deaths caused by poorly sanitized water diseases.
Some observers have projected that by 2025 more than half of the world population will be facing water-based susceptibility. According to a report, issued in 2009, water demand will exceed supply by 50% in few developing regions of the world by the year 2030. This is very alarming and really need global attention.
WATER
“Water is one of the most important substances on earth. All plants and animals must have water to survive. If there was no water there would be no life on earth.”
“Safe Drinking Water is vital for all known forms of life even though it doesn’t provide calories or organic nutrients.”
Photo Credit: www.pixabay.com
Apart from drinking it to survive, people have many other uses for water:
- cooking
- washing their bodies
- washing clothes
- washing cooking and eating utensils
- keeping houses and communities clean
- recreation; such as swimming pools
- keeping plants alive in gardens and parks
- Water is also essential for the healthy growth of farm crops and farm stock and is used in the manufacture of many products.
Photo Credit: www.123rf.com
Now here are some facts that could give us better understanding or information about water and everything associated into it.
FACTS:
The human body is composed of 80% water.
The human brain is made up of 95% water blood is 82% and lungs 90%.
One glass of water shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100%.
At birth, water accounts for approximately 80 percent of an infant’s body weight.
A healthy person can drink about three gallons (48 cups) of water per day.
The United States uses about 346,000 million gallons of fresh water every day.
By the time a person feels thirsty, his or her body has lost over 1 percent of its total water amount.
The weight a person loses directly after intense physical activity is weight from water, not fat.
It takes 2.6 gallons of water to make a sheet of paper.
It takes 2,641 gallons of water to make a pair of jeans.
An estimated 801,000 children younger than 5 years of age perish from diarrhea each year.
Photo Credit: Google
To know more about those surprising benefits of drinking water, please watch the video below.
Video Credit: www.youtube.com
SO WHY DO WE NEED WATER?
1. Serves As A Lubricant
One simple but very important function of water in our body is it serves as a lubricant in digestion, the water in our saliva (digestive enzyme secreted into our mouth by glands) provides lubrication that aids in chewing and swallowing, ensuring easy passage of the food we eat down to the esophagus.
Water also lubricates our joints and cartilages and allows them to move more fluidly or with less friction, meaning water plays a significant role in keeping away from having or suffering from possible joint, knee and back pain caused by injuries and arthritis.
Moreover, our eyeballs also need plenty of lubrication to work well and remain healthy.
2. Regulates Body Temperature
Blood plasma which made up of 92% water plays an important role in safeguarding the body’s temperature. It aids in the circulation of antibodies from the immune system, and regulating balance which all helps to retain proper body temperature.
On the other hand, the purpose of perspiration is to control over-heating and the more we drink water the more we sweat when we are exposed to extreme heat.
3. Transports And Metabolizes
Aside from being essential for proper digestion, water also plays a significant role in transporting and metabolizing carbohydrates and proteins (our bodies use as food) in the bloodstream. And most importantly, water also transport waste material out of our bodies. So less water would be, more waste products to remain in our body which may later cause some serious diseases.
4. Removes Toxins
Water suppresses the appetite naturally meaning it gives us a feeling of fullness and helps the body metabolize stored fat. Studies have shown that a reduction in water intake will cause fat deposits to rise, while an increase in water intake can actually reduce fat deposits. As I mentioned earlier water serves as carrier of waste materials out from the body, thus removing toxins particularly from the digestive tract which could accumulate and form a deadly illness including cancer if not thrown outside the body.
5. Other reasons why we need to drink adequate potable water.
a. Drinking enough amount of water everyday protects your heart or prevent heart attacks.
b. Water provides the brain the required oxygen to function well or at optimum levels so it boosts the brain.
c. Water has the ability to increase metabolic rate, thereby giving your body the ability to burn fat so it actually helps you lose weight.
d. Drinking a considerable amount of water can keep you alert and active during the day.
Now those are just few of the many things we should know about how important potable water is in our lives and I’m hoping with those limited although very vital information mentioned above we will realize and be able to comprehend or perhaps share to other people that it is indeed very important to drink a lot of water every day.
For a more extensive information, more detailed explanation, and many more relevant things related to this topic, please do watch the video below.
Video Credit: www.youtube.com
And for additional reference, you may click here to read the blog of xodium-chloride talking more about the importance of water, its uses, sources, etc. or you may refer to the links below to peruse or study more about this topic.
REFERENCES:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_water
http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/dwq/en/
http://www.enkivillage.com/potable-water.html
https://www.epa.gov/dwstandardsregulations
