Water: The Overlooked Nutrient

Water – The Overlooked Nutrient
When people talk about nutrition, they usually overlook one of the most important nutrients necessary for good health.  WATER!  That's mostly because we've taken it for granted for thousands of years.
Water alone cures many so-called “diseases”.  It even eases aches and pains.  Dehydration is a major problem, and it’s estimated that 4/5ths of the human population is dehydrated.  To further multiply this problem, as we get older, we tend to lose the “thirsty” feelings that urge us to drink. 
It’s usually recommended that we each drink 64 ounces of water per day - that’s 8 each 8 ounce glasses (full) every day.  Actually, the better recommendation for good health is 1 gallon per 50 pounds of body weight.  Few of us ever get even those minimum 8 glasses per day. The majority of adults in the US are borderline dehydrated.  This is a mostly unsuspected cause, or a contributor to almost all disease or illnesses.  You cannot drink too much water, so for better health start forcing yourself to drink more!  You’ll enjoy better health as a result.
We cannot absorb water properly in anything that contains caffeine or sugar, so soda, coffee and tea don’t count in your daily intake.  Some experts say that we should take enough water in so that our urine looks almost clear.  (Since I take a multivitamin with excess B vitamins, my urine is always slightly yellow colored.
Did you know that many deaths in nursing homes are actually caused by dehydration?  Dehydration of the frontal lobes is a major factor in senility and is often misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s.  
People are becoming aware that their drinking water (out of the tap) isn't very good any more. The market for bottled water is huge and becoming more and more profitable every year as a result.   But, is all bottled water safe?  Here are a few of the problems:
The plastic it is usually packaged in varies.  The “cloudy” type isn’t nearly as stable a plastic as the clear type.  And, all plastic gives up a few molecules to water (the universal solvent of the philosophers).  This is not good for any of us.  Hard plastic or glass is best. 
City and municipal water requirements are usually much more stringent than are bottling rules.  In a study of 103 brands of bottled water the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) found that 1/3rd of the over 1000 bottles tested contained bacteria,  as well as synthetic organic chemicals, and one sample even contained arsenic above state health limits. 
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates the tap water standards, and promotes a Minimum Federal Standard for cities and states.  They have no jurisdiction over bottled water, so there are no real standard to protect us.  (Can you trust any water bottler, or all of the employees of same?)
Let’s look at some labels and see what they really mean.
1.  Bottled Spring water:  All too often this is just a scam. Yes, it's from a "spring", but there is no guarantee that the water from this spring is pure. Often, it's bottled from a local water supply directly from a tap. It's from a spring OK, but what spring? There's big money in bottled water, and if you haven't noticed, it's sometimes even more expensive than soft drinks.
    2:  Drinking Water.  This is at least half honest. It's straight out of a faucet, so we can hope that it's at least relatively free of toxicity, and maybe meets the minimum Federal standard for drinking water. Did  you know that many, if not most, city and town water supplies in the USA do NOT meet  "Minimum"? (Of course, those "standards" only apply to sissies.) Good luck.
3.  Catching Rainwater. This time-honored way to get "pure water" just doesn't work very well anymore. The amount of toxic material in the air results in "Acid Rain" in much of the US. When my wife and I sailed around the Caribbean some years ago, we caught all our water that way, and simply filtered it thru a carbon block filter after putting in some chlorine to kill the possible airborne bacteria. It worked because the ocean rain is much purer than most of the rain over land.
4.  Carbon Filtered Water.  These are those little "screw-on" or "pitcher" water filters. Some even have a silver nitrate element to kill bacteria included. Few are good enough to remove most of the worst contaminants. And, few people change the filters often enough, so contamination creeps in again. They give you a false sense of security, and because of the carbon filtering, the water smells and tastes better, but in most areas, it simply isn't very good. (Perfume can cover up a contamination smell, but it doesn't remove the source.)
5.  Distilled Water. This is excellent for your steam iron or making Colloidal Silver, but unless it's distilled in glass, it may have high amounts of Copper or Nickel from the distilling piping used. It also usually has no taste - pretty flat. But, it's still better than what probably comes out of your faucet.
6.  Reverse Osmosis Water. This is probably the "best" of all drinking water, PROVIDED that the filters are changed regularly. Ideally, there are several "particle" filters and at least one carbon block filter prior to the Reverse Osmosis filter. This RO filter is a rubbery sheet, and by osmotic action, (and water pressure) molecules of water pass from the "dirty" side to the "clean side. This type of filter can also get clean drinking water from the ocean. It is by far the best drinking water.  (For a great taste, you can add about ¼ teaspoon of sea salt per gallon, and/or even a few drops of lemon juice.)   
Those are your choices for cleaner and safer water. As you can see, I recommend only the RO water because it's cheaper and safer than filling gallon jugs out of a RO machine in a supermarket! 
I found a simple under-counter Reverse Osmosis unit at Costco or Home Depot for under $150.  It wasn’t too difficult to install, and it works well for a year without changing filters in a two person household.  (Otherwise, change filters every six months.)
Your health is up to you.  I hope this helps you to make good choices.