Dehydration and Headache: How a Small Amount Can Prevent an Huge Attack!
by Dr. Mark Wiley

It is vital that every human being drink copious amounts of water every day--especially those who suffer headaches. Since water makes up roughly 75% or three-fourths of the human body (and 85% of the brain), it only makes sense that no tissue, organ or gland can function properly without ample supply of this natural fluid. It is the improper functioning of the digestive system, lungs, liver and kidneys that not only contributes to and triggers headaches, but also makes us ill. Indeed, we humans would surely cease to exist without the magic elixir known as water, which, next to oxygen, is the most vital substance on Earth.

Drinking ample quantities of water everyday is so important, that for centuries many traditional cultures have engaged its healing qualities to cure and prevent various illnesses and diseases. Traditional Chinese medicine recognized the healing powers of water more than 3,000 years ago. Even Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, was said to have drank and bathed in water to benefit from the healing properties of its mineral content. Indeed, the mere consumption of this fluid can help restore the body to its natural state of homeostasis by clearing toxins, cleansing the colon, flushing the liver and kidneys, and emptying the bowels--all necessary elements to removing and preventing a number of headaches.

How Dehydration Causes Headaches
With the abundance of water available in the United States and the sheer necessity of it to our health and well-being, it is a wonder that the many illnesses and ailments--including headaches--are actually caused or aggravated by simple dehydration. The leading researcher of our time on illness and diseases caused by dehydration is Dr. F. Batmanghelidj, an internist trained at St. Mary's Hospital Medical School of London University and one of the last students of Sir Alexander Flemming, the discoverer of penicillin. In his book, The Body's Many Cries for Water , Dr. Batmanghelidj asserts that "Chronic, unintentional dehydration is the origin of most pain and degenerative diseases in the human body." These, he notes, include migraines.

It was while spending several years in an Iranian prison, that Dr. Batmanghelidj came to discover the healing powers of simple water, and the negative effects of dehydration.   While his research has been focused on such chronic illnesses as heart burn, lupus, arthritis and peptic ulcers, in an interview published at PhenomeNEWS.com, he stated that migraines are "...a sign of water need by the brain and the eyes. They will totally clear up if dehydration is prevented from establishing in the body."

Batmanghelidj found that as the water content of tissues falls to a certain point as a result of dehydration, the bi-layer membranes that surround cells contract, forming a barrier that prevents further water loss. This obstructs the free movement of molecules, so that metabolism and elimination are limited. Slow metabolism and elimination lead to build-up of toxins in the blood, which can manifest as a chemical-induced headache.

It is important to understand that regardless of the quantity of your daily water intake, its percentage in urine remains constant at around 95%. When the hypothalamus detects a lowering of water volume in the body, it signals the pituitary gland to release the antidiuretic hormone (ADH) into the bloodstream, which increases the capacity of the kidneys to reabsorb and recycle water. In essence, when the body moves into survival mode by contracting the bi-layer membranes, the kidneys keep recycling and concentrating the urine in an effort to maintain sufficient hydration. Thus, the less water put into the body, the less the body's ability to cleans itself of poisonous toxins through elimination via urine, feces, perspiration and the breath. And since waste products left to accumulate in your tissues creates chronic pain, headaches and many diseases, water intake is necessary to facilitate the effective elimination of the toxic build-up.

It is in part due to the overtaxing of the colonic track by overeating, ingesting foods high in spices, nitrates and other chemical content, in addition to an abundance of sugars or alcohol, that one feels exhausted, lethargic, experiences seemingly unending dull headaches, catches colds easily or becomes seriously ill. It is precisely the absorption of the nutrients in the colon and intestines from the food we eat that prevent, cause, or cure what ails us. In fact, research has indicated that a thorough flushing of the mucus folds in the colonic tract where toxins and wastes generally remain will cleans the system and keep the body healthy and the immune system strong. At the same time, quantities of water are known to revitalize the kidney and liver. Thus, by drinking ample quantities of water, the colon will become more effective, thus increasing the quantity and supply of fresh blood that can then move throughout the body. And improper blood flow and insulin levels are known migraine triggers.

In short, it is vital that every cell, tissue and organ in your body be sufficiently hydrated for your body to return to and maintain its natural state of homeostasis. It is only in this state, that the chemical toxins that have built up in the body can be properly processed and eliminated. Water is the only substance that can properly hydrate the body; not caffeinated coffees and teas, carbonated sodas or sugar-filled fruit drinks. Only water, pure and simple as it is, will keep you healthy and help the body eliminate many of the underlying headache triggers.

Not All Water Is Safe To Drink
Not all water is suitable for drinking. In fact, in cities such as Baltimore, the fecal level in the water supply has been so high in recent years that the government has had to step in and deem the situation a national emergency.

As Drs. Milne and More note in Definitive Guide to Headaches:

"...even with a filter, tap water is not the safest to drink, especially if you are headache-prone.... With every cup of tap water you swallow, you increase your risk of being exposed to heavy metals and/or chemical toxins, especially if you fill your glass during the times the water districts add any of the 700 chemicals available for use in water supply."

According to a report published by the Environmental Protection Agency ( www.EPA.gov ) in 1993, 819 cities in the United States had exceeded lead levels in their drinking water, and tap water supplied to 30 million people in America contains potentially hazardous levels of lead. In addition, the EPA offers the following stern warning:

"Naturally occurring contaminants also are being found in drinking water. For example, the radioactive gas radon-222 is found in certain types of rock and can get into ground water. People can be exposed to radon in water by drinking it, while showering, or when washing dishes."

Echoing this concern, Drs. Milne and More mention a survey conducted in Illinois, where the drinking water in a small town in the western part of the state

had been contaminated by the industrial chemical solvent trichloroethylene (TCE). More than half of the respondents reported severe or frequent headaches caused, in some cases, by merely taking a shower!

With this in mind, it is best that headache sufferers not drink water directly from their tap, as natural and chemical toxin build-up in the blood stream is a definite--though preventable--headache trigger. Thus, drinking purified bottled water or filtered water should be the only option.

How Much Water Is Enough?
There is much written about specific quantities of water that are needed by the body to function properly. Certainly, drinking a single glass of water at lunch or dinner will not do the job. And while the FDA recommends six, eight-ounce glasses of water per day, to reap the full health benefits from water one must think in terms of water as therapy and drink copious amounts throughout the entire day.

There are several measures for drinking an appropriate amount of water. For example, in his book, Radical Healing, Dr. R. Ballantine suggests that as adults we should optimally consume about eight ounces of water per 20 pounds of body weight. This equals roughly two quarts of water per day. More water is required if it is lost through perspiration from high temperatures or strenuous exercise.

Dr. Batmanghelidj proposes that while adults must consume specific quantities of water, they must also do it at specified times. He asserts the following:

"You need water before you sleep because for eight hours you are going to be drying up gradually. In the hot bed, you perspire. Your vascular system expands. You breathe out a lot of water. You manufacture urine even though you don't evacuate it until the morning. So you are dehydrated by first thing in the morning. The first thing in the morning, drink two glasses of water."

However, trying to remember specific times and quantities of water to consume can be cumbersome. I personally ascribe to a more liberal method of merely drinking all day and watching my urine color as a gauge for when I need to consume more water. It is generally agreed that adults need at least two quarts of water per day under ideal conditions--and colas, coffee and iced tea do not count toward this. If you drink water from a bottle throughout the day, after a period of hydration you will then find yourself making frequent trips to the restroom to relieve yourself. A continuous flow of water through your body that is continually washing away the toxins in your system and keeping them from building up and triggering headaches is exactly what you want.

If you maintain a constant flow of water through your body, your kidneys will not become over-taxed and forced to concentrate urine in an effort to maintain proper levels of hydration in your body. When urine is concentrated as a result of dehydration, its color becomes dark. Therefore, if you find yourself drinking throughout the day, but it has been a while since your last glass, check your urine. If it is colored, it is a sign that you are becoming dehydrated--and this happens quickly when consuming caffeinated diuretic beverages like coffee and soda--and it is time for another glass or two of water. I always keep my bottle of spring or filtered water filled and at my side. In this way, I will never forget to drink from it, and I will not be forced to consume chemically treated tap water in whatever location I happen to find myself.

In summary, we have established the undeniable fact that next to air water is the most vital substance know to man; that keeping the body properly hydrated helps remove toxins from the body while maintaining proper blood flow and organ, muscle and glandular functions; that it is best to drink water at room temperature so as not to shock the system; and that drinking water throughout the day, as dictated by urine color, is the best way to maintain proper hydration.

Your body will never feel as light or as clean and unpolluted as it will once it is properly hydrated. And in the process, a large portion of the on-going headache triggers that have attacked you in the past will be eliminated.