水 Water

Here are some benefits of drinking water found at this website...

1. Lose weight: Drinking water helps you lose weight because it flushes down the by-products of fat breakdown. Drinking water reduces hunger, it’s an effective appetite suppressant so you’ll eat less. Plus, water has zero calories.
2. Natural Remedy for Headache: Helps to relieve headache and back pains due to dehydration. Although many reasons contribute to headache, dehydration is the common one.
3. Look Younger with Healthier Skin: You’ll look younger when your skin is properly hydrated. Water helps to replenish skin tissues, moisturizes skin and increases skin elasticity.
4. Better Productivity at Work: Your brain is mostly made up of water, thus drinking water helps you think better, be more alert and more concentrated.
5. Better Exercise: Drinking water regulates your body temperature. That means you’ll feel more energetic when doing exercises. Water also helps to fuel your muscle.
6. Helps in Digestion and Constipation: Drinking water raises your metabolism because it helps in digestion. Fiber and water goes hand in hand so that you can have your daily bowel movement.
7. Less Cramps and Sprains: Proper hydration helps keep your joints and muscles lubricated, so you’ll less likely get cramps and sprains.
8. Less Likely to Get Sick and Feel Healthy: Drinking plenty of water helps fight against flu and other ailments like kidney stones and heart attack. Water adds with lemon is used for ailments like respiratory disease, intestinal problems, rheumatism and arthritis etc. In another words one of the benefits of drinking water is that it can improve your immune system.
9. Relieves Fatigue: Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body. If your body lacks water, your heart, for instance, needs to work harder to pump out the oxygenated blood to all cells, so are the rest of the vital organs, your organs will be exhausted and so will you.
10. Good Mood: Your body feels very good and that’s why you feel happy.
11. Reduce the Risk of Cancer: Related to the digestive system, some studies show that drinking a healthy amount of water may reduce the risks of bladder cancer and colon cancer. Water dilutes the concentration of cancer-causing agents in the urine and shortens the time in which they are in contact with bladder lining.

As soon as I get up in the morning I like to drink a big glass of water. I also don't like to drink water while eating my meals, I try to drink water 20 mins before or after eating food. Your body needs to work hard in getting all the nutrients from the food we eat and getting them to the right places in our bodies. When we drink lots of water/liquid with our meals, it acts like a Tsunami and wipes out and flushes away the nutrients that need to be used asap and causes digestion problems. This is a good point...

"HOW DRINKING WATER DURING MEALS INTERRUPTS DIGESTION

Guzzling down on water or other beverages during your meal can interfere with the digestive process because it increases the size of your stomach.  When there is too much liquid and food settling in your stomach, digestion can slow down.  Some experts suggest that drinking water also dilutes the gastric acid that your stomach produces.  Low gastric acid leads to incomplete digestion, and the extra liquid can also cause the fats and oils in the food to cling together which further prevents absorption. Experts say that, in general, four to eight ounces of water is permissible during each meal.  However, if you’re suffering from acid reflux disease or severe indigestion, you may need to scale back on the water completely."

Drinking cold water/beverages also causes bad digestion. The Chinese have it right there and know for good health drinking warm water is best.

 We drink lots of water at our house, in the sense that we don't drink soda, high fructose corn syrup fruit juice, etc. The only other drinks are the fresh vegetable/fruit juices I make with my juicer. Our do get other sugary drinks if someone else gives it to them outside of our house.