What’s the best liquid refreshment to go along with a healthy eating plan? You guessed it, water. According to one source, water accounts for just over half of your body weight – 57%. The chemical reactions in your body take place in a water medium. So, you need water. Clean, pure water.

But there’s a problem here. On the way to our advanced technological society, we managed to abuse our planet’s water supply thoroughly. Completely pure water is a thing of the past. Even the snow on the highest mountaintop isn’t as pure as it once was. However, humans are ever up to a challenge. Technology has abused our water supply, and technology has devised ways to minimize the effects of that abuse.

In our country, the water most of us drink is treated to nullify the effects of the micro-critters that can create havoc in our bodies. Chlorinated water flows freely from the taps in cities throughout the country. So, that’s what most of us drink. Indeed, in technologically advanced countries such as ours, chemical water treatment has virtually eliminated the devastating health problems that come from drinking polluted water. And in this case, the cure is not worse than the disease. Drinking chlorinated water is better than drinking water contaminated with raw sewage or other pollutants. But the cure for water pollution isn’t complete.

Researchers have found a relationship, in chickens, between chlorinated water consumption and depression of High-Density Lipoproteins – HDLs, the “good” cholesterol that “protects” against coronary heart disease. Granted, we aren’t chickens. But the effects were on the cholesterol, and we have that. Chlorinated water is not the best liquid to pour into your body daily, year after year.

Most of us have heard or read that we should drink eight glasses of water a day. Not a bad idea – if you eat the kinds of foods most Americans eat.

But when you eat mostly plant food, you need to drink only when you’re thirsty. And you won’t be nearly as thirsty as you were when your diet was meat, poultry, and fish-based.

So, as a practical matter, we need water. So, what’s the best kind of water? Reverse osmosis – RO – water. RO water is another technological innovation. Water is filtered through a special membrane that removes the substances you don’t need in your body. And it “cleans” the water without “killing” it. Bottled water is available today, and RO water and RO units are available for kitchen installation.

Your body doesn’t need coffee, tea, or soft drinks. Decaffeinated or not, they stimulate your body unnecessarily. The reaction of alcohol in the body is similar to that of the reaction of white sugar. It is pure energy. You get a temporary spurt of energy, but your body loses more than it gains.  Health is a function of balance. Moderation is the key. Treat yourself occasionally to the food and drink you enjoy, which doesn’t fall into the “good for you” category. And when you do treat yourself, enjoy it! Having guilt is much more toxic to your health than what you might eat or drink. So, enjoy it and let your body survive in comfort. Then, get back to body-friendly eating and drinking. More advice? Eat when you’re hungry; drink when you’re thirsty; listen to your body.