Drowning in Toxic Fluids?
by Stan M. Gardner, M.D.
We are thirsty. We are very thirsty. But we try to quench our thirst with peculiar, foreign fluids which do us little good and often do us harm. Even commonly accepted, “good for you” liquids sometimes have characteristics which interfere with our bodies’ abilities to process nutritional benefits. I have shared with you in past articles some of the pros and cons with fats and with carbohydrates. It’s time to tackle fluids. We’ll start with. . .got milk?
Milk
Many people (including children) are allergic to cows’ milk protein. [i] Have you noticed that after drinking milk you tend to clear your throat more? Opera singers do not traditionally take a glass of milk before going out on stage, because milk causes mucus production, which affects their voice. Mucus production is one indication of possible allergic reactions to a substance. Because some milk cows back in the 1800s (and some cows today) had infections that could be passed in the milk, milk is pasteurized-exposed to high heat (as in canning). This causes subsequent loss of enzymes and raw food value. As a means of standardizing milk for marketing purposes, the milk fat molecules are centrifuged down to such a small size that they no longer separate the fat from the milk. The homogenation process permits these small fat molecules to cross the human filter system with an enzyme called xanthine oxidase. Xanthine oxidase increases the potential for vascular (blood vessel) disease. [ii] Milk contains a sugar called lactose. If lactase, the enzyme which is responsible for digestion of lactose, is deficient in the small intestine, intestinal problems ensue. [iii] Recently several studies have revealed drug (mostly antibiotic) residue in milk. So-about milk-and this from someone who used to buy 17 gallons of milk a week to feed the kids-it’s a good idea to focus on other forms of fluid intake. For example, on your cereal, you can try soy milk. If you haven’t tried it recently, it’s worth another try. We really enjoy the plain organic soy milk. Other options include rice milk, almond milk, and goat’s milk. They don’t have the same problems cows’ milk has.
Soda Pop
One of the worst fluids to consume is soda pop (soft drinks). The average American consumes 56 gallons of soda pop per year, or the equivalent of 20 ounces (nearly two cans) of pop per person per day. I have at least five major concerns with drinking pop:
1. Ten teaspoons of sugar (150) calories per 12 ounce can provide no nutritional value other than highly refined carbohydrates (see the archival article on carbohydrates for more information). A sweetener that is worse than sugar is called aspartame or NutraSweet. It is a wood alcohol (methanol) connected to phenylalonine that is broken down in the body to formaldehyde, a fixative and carcinogen. [iv] This is subsequently broken down into formic acid, a strong caustic used by fire ants to administer their sting. My wife was once attacked by fire ants in Texas. They were so small and quick that she did not even notice they had swarmed up her bare feet onto her ankle. Then they stung simultaneously, and the pain and subsequent itching and pain were almost intolerable. That’s what is in aspartame and NutraSweet, and it’s not good for our bodies.
2. High acidity in the drink forces the body to neutralize it to reduce its harmful effects. Many viruses and bacteria (and cancer cells) thrive in an acidic environment. The high acid content also erodes tooth enamel. [v] The high acid is good for one thing, though-it’s a great degreaser. So don’t drink it. Use it on your tire rims to degrease them, or clean your engine.
3. Phosphoric acid is added to many soft drinks. Unfortunately our body matches phosphorus with calcium. The calcium is subsequently removed from bones, leading to osteoporosis. [vi] We are afflicted with an almost epidemic level of osteoporosis in the nation. Could it be due to the high intake of pop? I think so. Phosphoric acid is also harmful to the enamel of our teeth, contributing to dental caries.
4. Caffeine was substituted for cocaine (where Coca-Cola got its name) when cocaine was removed from soft drinks in 1914. Caffeine is both an addictive substance and a diuretic (causes the body to lose water). Headaches are associated with caffeine consumption or its withdrawal. As a stimulant it disrupts sleep and increases the heart rate. [vii]
5. The brown color in cola drinks comes from an ammonia caramel compound. This stuff isn’t good for you.
In one of our old neighborhoods, the neighbors often joked about needing to rush to the corner quick store to get their daily big drink of pop, so they could make it through the day. Sometimes the daily big drink extended to two. Eventually they put two and two together and started to realize that their headaches, joint aches, and heart palpitations got better when they stopped drinking pop. I have observed in my medical practice that when my patients stop their pop consumption, they go through withdrawal symptoms, but once over those, they improve in their health. Plain and simple, pop isn’t a good thing to drink.
Juice
With all the fluids we’ve talked about, I hesitate to burst the bubble of the “healthy” American juice, freshly squeezed. However, when we are hungry or thirsty for an orange, we are typically satisfied with one or two oranges. When we fresh squeeze oranges for juice, we may drink the fructose sugar of six oranges quickly, while not eating or drinking the accompanying fiber from the whole fruit. Fiber in and of itself changes the way sugar is utilized in the body in a more positive way. So, with much less total fructose sugar and more fiber in the orange, a whole orange fruit is healthier than the fiber-poor juice. Same goes for apples, grapes, etc. But if you’re comparing juice to Kool-Aid, juice wins out. If you must have juice, look for 100% juice. Better yet, squeeze your own. Better yet, get a machine that pulverizes the whole fruit into juice, seeds and all. That will serve you well.
Coffee, Tea, Wine
Official “studies” periodically announce a benefit from these beverages, then just as often comment on their detrimental qualities. For the best commentary on these and how they affect our health, check out Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Obedience to the revelations of the Lord will earn us a more healthy body than feverishly justifying a deviation because of the latest “research.” Herbal teas, however, can serve to help our bodies in a number of ways, depending upon the healing qualities of the herbs from which they are made.
Water
The best fluid to drink is water. Unfortunately, there are varying qualities and tastes of water. Even the quantity of water we should be drinking is inadequately studied. Some excellent studies indicate that increasing the quantity and quality of our water can markedly reduce and even alleviate many illnesses. [viii] Here we go with some best guesses. We should be drinking six to eight 8-oz. glasses of water each day. If taste prohibits you from drinking enough water, try lemon or lime in the water, or drink herbal tea. Thirst is not an early symptom of dehydration, so if you are thirsty, you have probably become quite dehydrated. Our thirst drive diminishes with age.
The treatment which water receives to make it potable leaves nasty-tasting particles in our water supply, chlorine being the big offender here. Additionally, elements in the soil can filter into the water, so our water can taste of sulfur or other elements depending on where it comes from.
I find it extremely difficult to recommend the ideal practical water system for optimal water. If you buy it from the store, the water sits in plastic jugs which leach plastic into the water over time-not a good choice. However, sometimes it is better than the tap water. Tap water, on the other hand, is checked for pathogens (bugs that cause illness) after chlorine is added to kill them. Inconsistent amounts of minerals are present, with occasional toxic metals like arsenic, which can leach into the aquifer. In some places fluoride (another toxic metal and industrial waste product) has also been added. I know I have opened a can of worms here. It’s too much to discuss in this article, however. There will be more on this later when I talk about teeth and health. For the most part, bottled water is healthier than tap water, although 25-40% of bottle water is tap water.
There are a variety of filtration systems. Reverse osmosis systems remove about 95% of all dissolved contaminants, while distillation removes close to 100%. This means that while you have pure, clean water, you cannot plan on getting any healthy minerals, which add good taste to water. Activated carbon filtration removes large impurities like pesticides, benzene, chlorine and organics (like TCE and THM). This significantly improves taste and odor in drinking water.
Although it is difficult to obtain scientific evidence of many purported breakthrough water treatments, I have included a few recently advanced theories for your consideration. In our family, we have chosen to use a water filter whose technology originated in Japan. The system uses carbon filters, but also adds Pi water, which has demonstrated favorable benefits on living cells. We have noticed, when putting fresh flowers in a vase full of the Pi water, our flowers look fresh for many days, even weeks, longer than when placed in regular tap water. Although we have our suspicions how these work, we cannot be certain of the scientific basis. I personally believe that high gauss magnets have a positive effect on water quality. Oxygenated water may impart energy to water molecules, thus changing their state. However, the best information I can give you on these things is anecdotal, and based on our personal experiences. Our water here in Ohio tastes terrible from the tap, but with the treatments we have given our water, it is tasty and clear. Missionaries come with pitchers in hand to get our filtered water to drink during the week!
What is my ideal water? It is water that is rain from the mountains, flowing downstream over rocks, uncontaminated and unpolluted. It would be clean, mineralized, oxygenated and energized. Perhaps the closest to this would be reverse osmosis or distilled water with added minerals, passed through magnets to break down and smooth the water, and finally run through an oxygenizer. Barring that possibility, you could try placing a carbon filter on tap water with a magnet on the intake pipe to the house or under the sink. It would be nice to find a way to make clean, tasty, affordable water available to everyone. Any inventors out there, ready to take on the task?
Healthful Hints
1. Clean, pure water is the best fluid for a healthy body, although lemon, lime, or herbal teas may make the taste of tap water more acceptable.
2. Other fluids can be a medium for rapid ingestion of harmful substances, and should be given careful consideration.
3. If juice is important, try to use juice of the whole fruit.
4. I highly recommend the following book for further information on your body’s needs for water and its healing effects: “Your Body’s Many Cries For Water” by F. Batmanghelidj, M.D. ISBN 9629942-3-5
[i] Bishop J, Hill DF, Hoskings CS. Natural History of Milk Allergy, clinical outcome. J. Pediatr 1990: 116:802-7.
[ii] Dr. Kurt Oster, Chief of Cardiology Emeritus, BridgePort Park City Hospital, The XO Factor.
[iii] Merck Manual-2nd Home Edition, Lactose Intolerance.
[iv] Shephard SE, Wakabayashi K and Nagao M. Mutagenic activity of peptides and the artificial sweetener aspartame after nitrosation. Food Chem Tox 312:323-329, 1993.
[v] US Patent Application 0030165442. The Procter and Gamble Company. A method of protecting teeth.
[vi] The Harvard University Gazette, June 15, 2000.
[vii] The Pharmacologic Basis of Therapeutics, Goodman and Gilman. P. 673.
[viii] The Owners Manual for the Human Body, James P. Frackelton, M.D., p. 26.