© 2016 Kebba Buckley Button, M.S., O.M. World Rights Reserved.
What cooling drinks do you reach for on a blazing hot day? What will you drink to outsmart heat stress? The best ones may not be the sweet, carbonated, icy, creamy, and alcoholic drinks you might think of, to cool you off. The most important thing is to make sure you serve your health with what you drink. If you want to feel good, or even great, on hot summer days, you’ll need to switch what you swallow. That means following these two tips:
First, stay hydrated! Drink filtered water, that is, water with the chlorine removed. Do not pay for an expensive water-conversion system to alter the water molecules (which we’ll discuss in another article), without first removing the chlorine. Chlorine is a poison to microorganisms (germs) which is the exact reason they put it in the public water supply. Your body doesn’t need it, and it’s bad for you.
A simple table-top carbon-filter pitcher will filter out the chlorine, fluoride, and other bad-tasting elements of tap water. You may find this water more refreshing if you keep it in the refrigerator. You may also want to ask your local health food store about mineral drops to add to filtered water. If your body is low on minerals, the drops added to your beverages will bring your stamina up the same day, or sooner.
Second, water is the most hydrating liquid you can drink, so drink it! If you hate plain water, try adding a little cherry juice concentrate, which will also give you a few carbs, potassium, and anti-inflammatory compounds. If you’re hiking or working outside, you may enjoy half water and half organic apple juice, which again will provide a few carbs calcium and a lot of potassium.
If you will be working or exercising outdoors a lot, do eat salty snacks! They’ll make you thirsty and keep you from losing too much of your body’s moisture through sweat. Check with your doctor about your ideal personal sodium-potassium-calcium balance.
Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.
– Thomas A. Edison
Avoid sugary foods and drinks, and alcohol! These dehydrate you! These will make you more thirsty and tired after the initial refreshing sensation. Avoid all artificial sweeteners (which we’ll discuss in a future article), going for fruit juices and concentrates as flavors. Anything with sugar, alcohol, or caffeine will give you a little boost, then put the squeeze on your kidneys. Alcohol is, for some purposes, a super sugar. So limit that, plus all refined sugars and caffeine, when you’re hot. The decaf coffee drinks still are loaded with antioxidants, so you still will get a boost, but a healthy one.
This is the fourth and last article in our Summer 2016 series on outsmarting Heat Stress. Try these strategies to feel your very best. After all, it’s your life, and aren’t you worth it? And that’s Upbeat Living!
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Energy – Peace – Meditation
- Kebba Buckley Button is an ordained minister whose passion is helping people find their Peace Within. She also a stress management expert and has a natural healing practice. She is the author of the award-winning book, Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), and Peace Within: Your Peaceful Inner Core, Second Edition. Her newest book is Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. Both that book and Peace Within are available through her office. Just email books@kebba.com.
- Would you like an appointment or to ask Kebba to speak for your group? Just email calendar@kebba.com .
Those are great suggestions, Kebba! I drink filtered water but should probably add back minerals. I was doing that for a while, actually, but hated the taste of the drops. So one day, I decided not to order more. Can I just say it’s hard to make healthy choices? 😉
Jeanine, I’m so glad you were adding back minerals. I wonder if another brand of mineral drops might be pleasant? I did throw away a dropper bottle of minerals recently; they were ridiculous. I’m with you: sometimes it’s hard to make healthy choices :-). Harder on hot days, for me :-). Thanks for reading my piece and commenting.