A Water-Driven World

Now that the school year is over, some of us have graduated and are moving on to explore new horizons, while others are filling their summer with some combination of work and vacation before tackling another semester. It is a constant cycle, like the ebb and flow of the tides in our great oceans.

The continuous movement of water above, on, and below the earth is known as the hydrologic cycle, and it is driven by the sun. Heat from the sun causes water in the oceans, lakes, and rivers to evaporate. Air currents carry this water vapour up to the atmosphere where cooler temperatures condense it into clouds. The cloud particles collide, grow, and fall back to earth as precipitation.

The precipitation falls back into the ocean (which contains 97.5 percent of the earth’s water) or onto land. When it falls on the land, it flows into rivers and lakes or infiltrates deep into the ground to replenish aquifers. These aquifers store huge amounts of fresh water for long periods of time. Some of this underground water pushes its way through cracks in the earth to emerge as fresh water springs.

Fresh water is essential to our health and longevity. About 60 to 70 percent of our bodies are composed of water, depending on age and gender: the brain is 70 percent water; the lungs are nearly 90 percent water; and about 83 percent of our blood is water. We need to replace approximately two and a half litres of water every day, depending on weight and physical activity, to aid the body’s cycle of digesting food, transporting waste, and controlling body temperature.

But let’s face it: that much water can get pretty monotonous, especially during summer’s long, hot days. In addition to making sure we drink enough water every day, we can stay cool and refreshed by spiking up our liquid intake with non-alcoholic smoothies, freshly-squeezed juices, and herbal ice teas — add a drizzle of freshly squeezed lemon juice for a shot of vitamin C and some zest. Just remember that caffeinated and alcoholic drinks don’t count as fluid intake because they dehydrate the body, even more so when it’s hot outside. As a matter of fact, for each alcoholic or caffeinated drink we consume, we should drink two additional glasses of water. Try getting inebriated on that!

So, as we continue through the cycle of life quenching our thirst for more knowledge, let’s also remember to help our bodies quench their thirst for more water.