What You Don’t Know About Water May Kill You:

The Wetter Water Report

By Dr. Patrick Flanagan

I used to think I drank plenty of water on a daily basis. I didn’t particularly enjoy drinking my daily 64 ounces, but at least I felt like it was good for me. After years of research with many scientists, I was shocked to discover that I might still be dehydrated after 8 glasses a day.

I wondered how this could be possible, especially seeing as how water is supposed to alleviate dehydration. The answer is actually simple: Not all water is created equal. Water is not just simply water. The chemical formula may be two parts hydrogen to one part oxygen, but there are many other characteristics to water that are often overlooked.

I believed because water came from a natural spring in Europe, it would be free of chemicals. Not true. I had the same belief about bottled water. Not true. And then there’s tap water. No matter how much I avoid it, everyday I bathe, shower, cook, and clean with it.

70-80% of the human body is composed of water. It is the ultimate solvent and mixes with almost everything biological or chemical. Our bodies are mostly water and, like you, I’m careful about what I drink. Yet today there are over 2,100 known toxins that cause cancer in U.S. drinking water. I used to think, “Come on! If harmful chemicals were really in drinking water, the city or state would do something.” But then one day I simply bought a home water testing kit and sampled some of my tap water. I was shocked and appalled at what I found. Just type “home water testing kit” into your favorite search engine for your own kit.

How Wet is Your Water?
“Wetter water”… It sounds strange. Some people even stare at me with a disconcerted look when I mention the concept. Yet after some initial confusion, skepticism takes a back seat to building curiosity. For millions of years, water has enabled reproduction, energy transfer, and everything we call “life” for millions of years. Water is the essence of life, and more than any other substance that I have studied or worked with, I still find it to be the most vital and important to human life and existence. The benefits of being hydrated include softer, more youthful skin, more energy, and a greater capacity to heal and remove toxins. There are ample health afflictions, such as chronic muscle pain, headaches, and arthritis that can be alleviated though proper hydration with the right kind of water.

What makes wetter water? The answer is how “slippery” it is. I discovered in my research that certain forms of minerals make wetter water and pull out toxins faster. The 100,000 known toxins in the environment and 2,100 known carcinogenic toxins in water translates to shocking statistics. Women now have a one in three chance of contracting some form or cancer, while men have a one in two chance. Currently, there are 19 major U.S. cities, including San Francisco, San Diego, New Orleans, Atlanta, Detroit, Denver and Phoenix, that have highly polluted sources of drinking water that are not suitable for human consumption. You can find out more at www.nrdc.org.

Toxic water is a warning I often heard when traveling to “exotic” locations, but now the threat has made its way home. The Environmental Working Group (EWG), in Washington D.C., says,

“Manufacturers dumped more than one billion pounds of toxic chemicals into rivers, lakes and other bodies of water between 1990 and 1994. EWG also estimates that manufacturers contributed about 450 million additional pounds via sewage. In the 1940′s, a billion pounds of synthetic chemicals were produced each year. By the 1980s, production skyrocketed up to more than 500 billion pounds, and 1,000 new chemicals are introduced into the environment and into water supplies every year. Yet, somehow, the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act only addresses 100 contaminants.

Pesticides are an entirely other problem. Two billion pounds of pesticides are used every single year. That’s eight pounds for every American. These pesticides enter water systems via disposal sites, animal waste, runoff, sewage, etc. After reviewing published (but not publicized) state data and conducting its own tests, EWG found that a single glass of Midwestern tap water has three or more pesticides in it at any given time.”

1,000 contaminants are added every year and only 100 are addressed. 1/10 of 1 year’s amount of toxins is not sufficient. Just one example is the fish in the U.K. is now reportedly contaminated by Prozac due to so many prescriptions, while the sewer systems have no way of breaking down this non-organic chemical. That’s just one example.

Commonly referred to as rocket fuel, perchlorate is used in the solid propellant of rockets, missiles and fireworks. Really, nothing to top your morning off better then some rocket fuel. Waste from the manufacturing and improper disposal of perchlorate is constantly being found in water and soil, and the occurrence of these findings has been steadily rising over the last few years. 26 out of 50 states have toxic levels of perchlorate in their public drinking water. Produce from these states also contains high levels of perchlorate, and some food, namely milk, lettuce, beef, and berries, are known to hold onto more perchlorate than other foods, so water isn’t the only way to contract this toxic chemical.

Out of 70 chemicals for which public health goals have been set, perchlorate is one of four that has a safety factor of 10, versus the usual safety rating of 100 to 1000. Right now, only 8 states have health warnings for perchlorate in drinking water. Massachusetts is jumping on the health train by requiring that their public water contain no more than 1 part per billion of perchlorate. Perchlorate in drinking water alters the production of thyroid hormones in the body. These hormones are essential for proper development of fetuses in pregnant woman. Fetal and infant development can be impaired significantly when mothers give breast milk, as perchlorate may be stored in the body.

And here are more chemicals found in everyday “drinking” water: arsenic, mercury, aluminum, fluoride, chlorine, and chromium 6. These toxins make their way into our bodies through everyday hazardous substances like rat poison, thermometers, batteries, pool water and so on. Where does it go once you’ve used it?

I can sum up the net effect of many environmental toxins in one sentence: Toxins deprive your cells of oxygen, hydrogen and water. They lower your body’s pH to be more acidic,  and that can be very dangerous. The net effect is clear: Environmental toxins slowly choke your cells to death.

Physical Properties of Water
What characteristics make one water healthy and another unhealthy? After chemical contaminants, the next most important are physical properties. Changes in the way water flows and changes have profound effects on detoxification. The way water flows is governed by surface tension. When a drop of liquid is placed on a membrane, the drop either spreads into a thin uniform layer or remains in a discrete drop. The degree of interaction between the drop and the surface is known as “wetting.” Ordinary water has a high surface tension, which means it has a difficult time wetting the cells within the body. In the body, cell membranes are phospholipids (fats) have low surface tensions of about 45 dynes/cm. Cells require a surface tension of roughly the same range for water to wet the cells, thus allowing the water to pass through the fatty acid cell wall carrying nutrients and vitamins. This concept is the same relationship as the idea that oil and water do not mix. Normal tap water has a surface tension of 73 dynes/cm, which means that the water is able to move cells through the body, but is not capable of penetrating the cell. This water passes through the body but cannot penetrate cells without lower surface tension.

The lower the surface tension, the “wetter” the water is. Think of wetter water as “slippery.” Slippery water glides faster, covers surfaces more completely and allows ingredients to dissolve more completely. In the body, water with lower surface tension fully hydrates. Without low surface tension, toxins cannot be removed from cells and the cells die due to accumulation of their own waste products. These waste products are compounded by the many hazardous chemicals, such as perchlorate and pesticides typically found in the body due to tap water and food contamination. In order for toxins to leave the cells and nutrients to enter the cells, the cells must be in contact with water that has a low surface tension. Thus, a low surface tension environment is optimal for cellular health. Lower surface tension equals faster toxin removal and a healthier body.

While water is one of the most important things you put into our body, only the right kind of water produces health and longevity. You may drink significant volumes of water at 73 dynes/cm (normal bottled water), but without the micro nutrients in your body to convert the fluid to 45 dynes/cm, the body remains dehydrated at a cellular level. When you don’t get enough of the right kind of water, you become dehydrated. Dehydrated cells become catabolic, meaning the body starts utilizing its own tissue for energy production, resulting in degeneration of cellular health and immune response. Over time this process may result in auto immune diseases, such as lupus, MS, chronic fatigue, rheumatoid arthritis, allergies, and many more degenerative processes. Chronic dehydration can also lead to dizziness, dry mouth, headaches, back pain, fatigue, anxiety, and erectile dysfunction, as well as wrinkles and other signs of premature aging. In fact, most people are partially dehydrated.

Did You Know?
• 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. I believe this is due to toxins in the environment.
• In 37% of Americans, thirst is often mistaken for hunger because the thirst mechanism is so weak.
• Mild dehydration slows the metabolism by as much as 3%.
• Insufficient water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.
• 8 ounces of water shut down hunger pangs in nearly 100% of dieters in a University of Washington experiment.
• Most bottled water has a very high surface tension (73 dynes/cm), i.e. harder to penetrate your cells.
• 1/3 of the bottled water that was tested contained levels of contamination.
• 1/4 of ALL bottled water is bottled tap water.
• One well-known brand of “natural spring water” was actually water obtained from an industrial facility’s well.

Check out http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/appa.asp to see how bottled waters measure up.

With this in mind, make sure that that you drink water in its most useful form. Many supplements claim to increase nutrient absorption; however, I have not found any able to produce any clinical, medical or other evidence to support those claims that can be reproduced. If you know about any, please e-mail them to me at help@WetterWater.net.

The absorption of nutrients and vitamins from our foods is largely dependent on our body’s ability to wet and process nutrients in the digestive system. A body with wetter water means wetter cells means more toxins out and more nutrients in. The net effect is that you have more capacity to maintain adequate health.

References
1. www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/exesum.asp
2. http://www.students.washington.edu/mtc4/water/bottled_water.htm (This link is no longer active.)
3. www.Dartmouth.edu/~news/releases/2001/mar01/flouride.htm (This link is no longer active.)
4. www.ottawa.ca/city_services/water/27_2_5_1_en.shtml (This link is no longer active.)
5. www.diagnoseme.com (This link is no longer active.)
6. www.health.discovery.com/encyclopedias/illnesses.html?chrome=None&article=591&page=7
7. www.brunnerbiz.com/thebestwater
8. www.epa.gov/safewater/ccl/perchlorate/perchlorate.html (This link is no longer active.)
9. www.dhs.ca.gov/ps/ddwem/chemicals/perchl/perchlindex.htm
10. www.EnvironmentCalifornia.org
11. www.Cleanwateraction.org
12. www.awwa.org/advocacy/yourwater/issues/onpoint_perchlorate.cfm
13. www.enprotec.net/chandyosh.html (This link is no longer active.)
14. www.nrdc.org
15. Based on the Clean Water Action Project of 2002, performed by the Ralph Nader Group.
16. “Quantitative Analysis of Membrane Diffusion Kinetics and Surface Tension Differentiation by a Colloidal Silicate Mineral,” Cory J. Stephanson, Ph.D. and G. Patrick Flanagan, M.D., Ph.D.
17. “Microcluster® Mineral Technology,” Kimberly Purdy-Lloyd, M.S. and “Bio-Electronics of Microhydrin®” by Dr. Patrick Flanagan
18. Health Science, Spring 2001 Edition, Page 11.

Report editing by Devra Weismann