Thirst for the Worst

As a culture, we tend to have “dormant thirst” sensations. We think we are hungry, or restless, or sleepy when really we are thirsty. We confuse our thirst for something it is not; we would prefer to NOT be thirsty. We admit to each other: “I know I don’t drink enough water”. “I hate getting up at night to go to the bathroom” and, “I don’t really like the taste of water.”

We wait until our need for hydration is so strong that our desire turns into an “ice cold drink”. The most common thirst quenchers are an iced coffee, a cold refreshing beer or an ice cold soda. All of these are extremely dehydrating and acidic. Much of the following information will apply to all three of these choices, but since sodas are the most acidic and dehydrating, this article focus on the pitfalls of drinking soda pop.

I first learned about the pitfalls of sodas 20 years ago when I saw a video explaining how the ingredients of sodas leech out calcium from our bones and teeth along with other vital minerals. At that time, I didn’t completely understand why it did that, but being one who experienced menopause 10 years earlier than is the norm, I didn’t want to set myself up for osteoporosis. So I cut down on my soda intake by 90% at that time, but not completely understanding it yet, I didn’t cut it out entirely until 2008.

I had been making an effort to drink less cola, but not necessarily other clear soft drinks. After all, mom gave us 7Up and Sprite when we were sick in bed as kids, didn’t she? I was giving in to craving sodas periodically, and I certainly wasn’t someone who drank more than 4-6 glasses of water per day. To be honest, the water felt harsh to me, and I never felt that satisfied.

I found it to be a challenge to toggle between drinking water and soda. Water is so boring when compared with the effervescent, icy magic, and sweet taste of a soft drink (or even a beer).

If I had a soda, I would often lose interest in drinking water. So I tried to drink water whenever it was offered at a restaurant and in a meeting. If I put lemon in the water to alkalize it, it definitely made the water softer and more appealing. I still wanted it with ice, although I saw my friends and family passing on the ice and couldn’t imagine why? Sodas (and alcoholic drinks) help us temporarily forget our thirst cravings by numbing our senses with icy coldness.

The ice we put into our drinks is also another enemy in the battle to keep your body pH within a certain numerical range. Your body has two things to do once you add the challenge of ice. It needs to bring its pH back to a 6.5 to 7.5 pH balance from the soda, and the ice requires lots of body heat to neutralize its coldness…heat reduces the alkalinity and drives the pH down. When you introduce any soda (yes, even Mom’s 7Up) you are creating a sudden drop in pH to 2.5. The pH scale is 1 to14 with 7 being the neutral zone. The reason that calcium leeches out of your bones is because it is pulled automatically from your body to quickly neutralize your blood when there is a sudden attack of 2.5 acidity from a soda. That calcium is borrowed from your bones and your teeth. The lower the pH, the higher the amount of calcium that is “borrowed”. If your calcium levels are low, this form of highway robbery can be extremely debilitating to your health.

When we consume high amounts of low pH items (anything below 7.0), we our kicking ourselves back down before we can get up. Our bodies perform best when our blood pH is slightly over 7.0 (7.3 to 7.6 is optimal). During the day, our stomach and blood compensate for the pH fluctuations that occur as we eat and drink. And given normal circumstances, we are able to come back to a (plus or minus) 7.0 range easily.

A pH of 2.5 isn’t even halfway to where we want our blood to be. By comparison, vinegar is at 3.0, and coffee and beer are generally found between 4.5 and 4.8. Food, drinks, stress, and other external conditions, all play havoc with our pH levels, which either help us maintain our good health or put us at risk for illness and disease. Our amazingly resilient bodies bring our blood levels back to balance over and over. But when we consume high amounts of sodas, it’s as if we were holding someone’s face down under water too long and never giving them a chance to catch their breath; eventually, we become tired and weakened. When we force our pH levels down so often, our body eventually reaches a point where it can’t fight back and succumbs to illness or disease. Also, as we age (I like to call it “evolve”) and start to see our 45th birthday, our chemical responses begin to change, and the resources that we previously used to reclaim our pH equilibrium become less effective or non-existent.

A low pH blood level becomes a basis for problems. Acidic blood is a haven for tumors and other chemical imbalances. I water my plants with acid water and they thrive. How many of us have diseases growing in our body because we are too acidic - too often?

Sodas dry you out (dehydrating you like alcohol does). Instead of hydrating your organs, skin, and tissues, sodas are aggressively dehydrating and severely acidifying your blood. The Oxidative Reduction Potential (or ORP) of sodas is somewhere between -350 and -400. The goal is to have a positive ORP number, NOT a negative one. A negative ORP value adds to your aging process. A low ORP makes you “rusty” inside. Think of a cut pear, apple, or avocado that turns brown upon exposure to air. That’s what sodas do to your internal organs and tissues.

When I first learned about this, I thought I would just make sure to drink more alkaline water to counteract my occasional sodas. But then I saw in a demo that it takes 32 sips of high pH water to neutralize ONE sip of soda! A 32:1 ratio is some very daunting math when you consider the amount of nutrients that will be borrowed from your bones and teeth!

Interestingly, reverse osmosis (RO) water isn’t strong in either pH or in ORP. I’ve just spent the last 20 years drinking RO water because of a book that I read by Paul Bragg, a famous health advocate. He was against mineral water, spring water and tap water because he felt the minerals might clog your arteries as you aged. Distilled water and reverse osmosis water are devoid of electrons and minerals. The Japanese call it “dead water”. Bio-electrically, we need the minerals to conduct energy and transport intercellular communication. Minerals are needed for nourishment of your cells. Just like fish can’t thrive in distilled or reverse osmosis water, neither can your cells. A decision we all have to make is what do we believe is right for us? After becoming more involved in acupuncture and meridian health, I believe we need the minerals in water in order to thrive. There will always be many opinions and philosophies around to challenge our thinking. What do you believe?

For me, seeing is believing! If you would like to see some very interesting pH and ORP demonstrations, I have added a Kangen Water DVD in our Products Section on my RX-Free Zone website.

On the DVD, there is a pH demo of 7-8 waters and popular drinks, and then in the Special Features section, there is an ORP demo of 16-20 different clear drinks, including vodka!

Additionally, there is a fascinating article by Dr. Howard Hay (with a feisty rebuttal from Dr. Andrew Weil) in the Article section (below). This is a “must read” for understanding all the sides of this topic.

For even more information about the hazards of drinking coke, read this blog: What Happens To Your Body Within An Hour Of Drinking A Coke. You will be amazed!

Articles:
Can Alkaline Diet and Alkaline Water Help You Lose Weight and Improve General Health? by James Khan

The pH Balance of Water Versus Blood by Dr. Janet Starr Hull

More articles from Timi:
Be sure to read “Your Brain: Your Body’s Drought Manager” and “Three Ways to Know You Are Experiencing Dehydration” from my article collection in order to fully understand why not being adequately hydrated causes diseases to crop up.

Books (that will give you more background about this article):
The Miraculous Properties of Ionized Water by Bob McCauley
If you are interested in how using a water ionizer/electrolysis alkaline water machine works, or want to know more about the practice of using various pH (acidic and alkaline) waters for increasing your health, this book has many specific stories, testimonials, and research examples.

The Water Prescription by Christopher Vasey, N.D.
This book is chock full of information and explains the physiology of how water is absorbed and more about chronic intercellular dehydration. It includes discussions on the values of various liquids and includes a comprehensive list of mineral and spring water sources in the world. There is a reason that Lourdes is a healing site!

The story behind the photos

Quote of the Year:
"Though water doesn't spoil, it may eventually acquire a peculiar taste from its container, though it's still 'very drinkable.'"

- Ray Crockett, Coca Cola Spokesman, on the 'packaged water' donated to Katrina Relief Efforts.