Drinking Of The Diet

4. Drinking Of The Diet

4.1 Foods That Cause Thirst

Excessive thirst is caused by eating foods which are either deficient in natural fluids or high in salt, spices or their condiments. A high-protein diet also requires more fluid intake because the waste products of such foods require a large amount of water for their solution and excretion.

Foods become deficient in natural fluids either by cooking or drying them. Cooked foods lose their natural water in the steam that leaves them while cooking. Dried fruits, nuts, dried beans, peas, and other foods which have had their water content decreased by storage or drying are also “deficient” in water content.

The solution appears simple: don’t cook fresh foods and they will remain water-sufficient. If dried foods are eaten, they may first be soaked in distilled water or eaten with a compatible, high-fluid food (such as lettuce and nuts).

Most thirst occasioned by foods, however, is due to the salt that is added to them. The body tissues become deprived of water when salt is used. Salt is an irritant to all the cells of the body, and water is used to flush and transport this poison out of the system. This is why extra water is desired when eating salted foods—the body is attempting to remove this biocidal seasoning as quickly as possible.

Other strong spices and seasonings may also bring about a desire to drink. These, too, act as irritants to the delicate tissues of the body, and the water serves as a transporter.

To avoid unnatural and excessive thirst, eat your foods fresh, uncooked, and unseasoned.

4.2 The Water-Sufficient Diet

One of the criteria for an optimum diet is that it should also be water-sufficient. That is, a good diet should also supply you with sufficient fluids so that drinking needs are minimal or nonexistent. One reason for this is that the best fluids for your body—the purest and most natural liquids—are the fresh juices of fruits and vegetables as they exist in the food itself.

The fluids of fresh fruits and vegetables contain superior minerals and natural sugars. They are easily assimilated and supply all the cells with all the nutrients they require.

By a wise selection of your food, you can supply all your body’s fluid needs with the best possible liquids.

Certain vegetarian animals that feed on wild grasses and fruits never drink water as long as they can find their natural food. Generally, these animals live on foods that have about an 85% water content. Mother’s milk contains about 87% water, and an infant feeding on this food alone never requires additional water. It appears that as long as foods are eaten which are from 80% to 95% water, thirst will not occur and all the body’s water needs will be met in a superior fashion.

4.3 The Water-Sufficient Foods

Almost all fresh fruits and vegetables contain 80% to 95% pure water. These foods should form the majority of an optimum and water-sufficient diet.

Other foods may be included, such as seeds and nuts, provided that they are eaten with high-fluid foods in a compatible combination. For example, most nuts are 4% to 5% water. Lettuce is 95% water. If a sufficient amount of lettuce is eaten with a small quantity of nuts (say, 1 ounce of nuts and 8 ounces of lettuce), then a fluid average of 85% is maintained for the meal and thirst will not develop.

It’s really not necessary to be so concerned with figures, percentages, and proportions. A simple rule to follow is this: if a natural food is eaten that is low in water content, then it may be advisable to eat a salad, raw vegetables, fruits or whatever is compatible to balance the low-water food. Of course if your meal consists mostly of cooked, refined, or concentrated foods, then it may be impossible to balance them with water sufficient foods.

The optimum diet does not include salt, seasonings, or spices. All of these substances occasion thirst and cannot be utilized by the body.

If you eat an abundance of fresh, raw, unseasoned fruits and vegetables (supplemented by nuts and seeds if desired), then you will be satisfying all your water needs with the highest form of liquids. You will rarely experience thirst, have no desire to drink, and will enjoy the optimum level of health that is the birthright of every human being.