Attention! Revised & Updated 2nd Edition of Healing Digestive Illness Now Available.
The Watercure Recipe
I first learned about the watercure recipe in January, 1997. It was the mid-day break during a seminar I was presenting called: Building Bridges to Better Health. A young man handed me a book with the title: Your Body’s Many Cries for Water by F. Batmanghelidj MD and said: “Here, it’s a gift. I think you will find this book very interesting.” And the rest as they say is history.
I read the book on my flight home from Tulsa, Oklahoma (where I was presenting the seminar) and first thing Monday morning I called the book publisher to see if I could arrange a conversation with Dr. B (short for Batmanghelidj). Within a few minutes, I was speaking to Dr. B and within a few minutes after that, I started the watercure. 14 days later my body was finally properly hydrated (or getting there) for perhaps the first time in my life. 14 days after I started the watercure, the bout of depression and anxiety that had been with me for about six weeks, lifted. I had been suffering from periodic, episodic bouts of anxiety and depression that would come on suddenly and sometimes last days, weeks or months…for over 25 years.14 days into the watercure and my symptoms of anxiety and depression were gone.
I am writing these words in January, 2015 and since that day in January, 1997 I have not had another moment of anxiety or depression. The circumstances of my life have not changed dramatically since that time. The nature of my work, family life and normal stresses and strains remain, just like everyone else. What has changed is that since January 1997, I’ve been properly hydrated each day via the watercure and this simple habit has made all the difference in my health and well-being.
I have experienced many other health benefits as a result of this habit of proper daily hydration via the watercure and you will too. I am so thankful to Dr. B. His kindness, generosity and acute insights into the physiology of hydration at the cellular level has dramatically improved the quality of my life and health. Please read his books!
If you have any questions about how to integrate the steps of the watercure into your current diet and lifestyle, please just call me or email me. My contact information will be at the end of this document.
How to Do The Watercure
Please do not underestimate the importance of being consistent with the correct amount of water you need to drink each day. Water and salt in combination promote and restore proper hydration levels within the cells and systems of the body. Proper daily hydration is the most significant biomodulating and homeostatic influence inside the human body. When the body is properly and consistently hydrated, everything else functions better. If you exercise and sweat, consume any diuretic beverages (alcohol, coffee, tea, soda, caffeine), then you will need to consume more water to make up. Your body loses 32 ounces of water each day just from breathing and sleeping and sitting around! If you exert yourself vigorously and sweat profusely, you will need to be very careful to restore proper hydration levels and then maintain proper hydration levels. Half your body weight in ounces of water is therefore, the absolute minimum of water you need each day. But don’t over-hydrate yourself either. Find the balance. Find the right amount of water for you given your unique circumstances and conditions and all will be well.
Let’s summarize the steps of the watercure recipe
If you have any questions about how to implement the watercure recipe into your current diet and lifestyle, you can phone me during the day at 413-536-0275 or email me at russellmariani@verizon.net and visit: www.healingdigestiveillness.com
Updated and Revised for 2015
(this document is updated annually)
Why Is Proper Daily Hydration So Important?
You need to understand that your body is likely suffering from a condition of chronic unintentional dehydration. Remember, I said unintentional. This is not necessarily the primary cause of your uncomfortable digestive system problems and symptoms (or other health concerns), but it is a major contributing factor. When this dehydration problem is corrected, your symptoms could disappear altogether.
Proper daily hydration is transformational.
You have just read about the seven steps that make up the watercure recipe. You must follow this recipe as described above as soon as possible. This means that depending on your unique circumstances and conditions, it might take you three days to make this transition and it might take you three weeks. What matters most is that you get to 100% compliance as soon as you possibly can. Don’t rush, but don’t procrastinate either.
For the very best results possible, please order some Celtic sea salt right away. For the best prices and how to order, see the information below. Use whatever sea salt you have on hand, or get some at your local health food store, until you get the Celtic sea salt. Some natural food stores are now carrying the Celtic Salt; like Whole Foods Market. Or order online at www.selinanaturally.com/celtic-sea-salt
The Celtic sea salt contains many other minerals and trace minerals (over 40) and this allows for better absorption into the cells, better communication between cells, and the incalculable therapeutic effects of alkalinizing our blood and lymph. I keep using this term, alkalinizing, but what I really mean is stabilizing our body fluids at their proper pH levels. For example, the pH of human blood must remain constant at 7.35 to 7.45 for optimum health. The pH of ocean water is nearly identical to the pH of human blood. Imagine that.
The primary reason commercial table salt is so bad for us is that it is almost pure sodium chloride. It has been stripped of all other minerals. This kind of salt is not natural at all. It is highly processed and refined. It is even bleached to be white. No wonder it is toxic to the body! Naturally harvested salt from the ocean is gray and moist, not white and dry. So, when you hear about medical doctors and other health care providers warning you about salt, they are right but they are NOT REFERRING to organic quality, mineral-rich sea salt, they are referring to processed table salt.
When you use the Celtic sea salt in the correct amounts according to the watercure recipe you will not increase the problems normally associated with the excess use of commercial quality processed salt, you will decrease their likelihood of occurrence. This is because of the dramatic qualitative differences between organic quality sea salt and commercial quality highly processed and refined table salt. Use the sea salt. Don’t use the commercial table salt. If you are not sure what you should do, and have not been convinced by now of the therapeutic value of sea salt, please do not proceed. Call me. Email me.
I talk to people all the time who claim to drink tons of water daily. These same people will report astonishing results as soon as they start adding the organic sea salt per the instructions of the watercure recipe. The combination of water and salt is a powerful natural remedy for all kinds of problems.
The warm salted water we drink is absorbed into our body through the stomach. Follow these suggestions (sipping constantly throughout the day) and your stomach will not feel bloated or full. Your bladder will get stronger not weaker. Your bladder capacity will increase and if you suffer from the symptoms of frequent urination and/or urinary incontinence, they will subside and eventually disappear altogether. You must drink your water on an empty stomach and before meals. Wait about 15-20 minutes after meals before resuming your water intake or you may dilute your digestive juices, which is not good. Sometimes you need to wait longer. You decide.
There is still some debate about this last point but I would rather err on the side of caution and my last 18 years of observations and personal experience. As I have said many times already (throughout my book) when you are feeling healthy and whole and strong again, you will need to take all of my “suggestions” with a grain of salt and mostly rely on your own experimenting to ultimately find out what works best for you. But this advice is for down the road, well into Phase Two or even into Phase Three of your program. In Phase One, it is best to follow my suggestions as described here and in other documents and in my book.
Think of proper daily hydration as the foundation of your physical health habits.
Everything else you learn and do about Intestinal Regeneration and Functional Nutrition will be built upon this one simple habit. Everything else you do will work better if you practice this habit of proper daily hydration effectively. And everything else you do will work less effectively if you do not practice this daily hydration habit correctly and consistently. A word to the wise is sufficient.
If you have any questions about how to implement the watercure recipe into your current diet and lifestyle, you can phone me during the day at 413-536-0275 or email me at russellmariani@verizon.net and visit: www.healingdigestiveillness.com
Updated and Revised for 2015
(this document is updated annually)
I read the book on my flight home from Tulsa, Oklahoma (where I was presenting the seminar) and first thing Monday morning I called the book publisher to see if I could arrange a conversation with Dr. B (short for Batmanghelidj). Within a few minutes, I was speaking to Dr. B and within a few minutes after that, I started the watercure. 14 days later my body was finally properly hydrated (or getting there) for perhaps the first time in my life. 14 days after I started the watercure, the bout of depression and anxiety that had been with me for about six weeks, lifted. I had been suffering from periodic, episodic bouts of anxiety and depression that would come on suddenly and sometimes last days, weeks or months…for over 25 years.14 days into the watercure and my symptoms of anxiety and depression were gone.
I am writing these words in January, 2015 and since that day in January, 1997 I have not had another moment of anxiety or depression. The circumstances of my life have not changed dramatically since that time. The nature of my work, family life and normal stresses and strains remain, just like everyone else. What has changed is that since January 1997, I’ve been properly hydrated each day via the watercure and this simple habit has made all the difference in my health and well-being.
I have experienced many other health benefits as a result of this habit of proper daily hydration via the watercure and you will too. I am so thankful to Dr. B. His kindness, generosity and acute insights into the physiology of hydration at the cellular level has dramatically improved the quality of my life and health. Please read his books!
If you have any questions about how to integrate the steps of the watercure into your current diet and lifestyle, please just call me or email me. My contact information will be at the end of this document.
How to Do The Watercure
- The water you drink must be free of all impurities. If you do not have an effective point-of-use home water purifier, for your drinking and cooking water, let me know and I will send you information about the unit I have been using and recommend-ing for over 25 years. It converts your tap water into purified water that is 99.99% free of all impurities for less than ten cents a gallon. Do not drink tap water. Do not use an inferior quality faucet filter as they often make your water quality worse not better. If you must, go to your local health food store and buy the bottled water they recommend; but the use of any bottled water should be temporary.
- The water you drink must be warm. Not hot, not cold, warm. The best temperature varies from person to person based on body type, metabolism and current state of health. Room temperature may be too cool because water, standing alone, will always want to return to its original temperature. For most people starting out and for all people with an inflammatory condition during Phase One, body temperature water is best. Our normal internal body temperature is 98.6 degrees. Your body works very hard to maintain this internal temperature. When you are sick, it takes extra energy and extra nutrients to maintain homeostasis, including your internal body temperature. Body temperature water is best.
- The water you drink must contain salt. Sea salt is best. Celtic sea salt is the best sea salt. One quarter teaspoon of salt per one quart of drinking water. One quart is 32 ounces. The Celtic sea salt from the Selina’s Naturally is now available in many retail stores. You can also phone them at 1-800-867-7258. I use and recommend the Light Grey Salt. There is some difference of opinion on the internet about whether to add the salt to the water or not. I was taught directly by Dr. B himself to add the salt to the water. I have been doing it this way and teaching it this way for almost 20 years. Each person needs to decide what works best for them. I prefer adding the salt to my water. The reason for adding the salt to your water is to aid the process of absorption and assimilation of the water molecules into your blood and into your cells. The presence of the salt also has an alkalinizing effect which is conducive to the natural healing process. If you cannot handle the taste of one quarter of a teaspoon of salt per quart of water, don’t worry. Just start with a smaller amount, even if that smaller amount is one grain of salt per quart of water. Then just build up gradually over days and weeks until you reach compliant levels. And for a variety of reasons, your body may prefer less than one quarter teaspoon of salt per quart of water. Experiment and discover what works best for you. Most people have some difficulty when first drinking intentionally salted water. These same people also report that they prefer the salted water once they get used to it and once they experience the profound benefits of proper daily hydration.
- Drink your salted water throughout the entire day. Sip your water. Don’t drink 6-8oz at a time. Drink 2-4 oz at a time. A mouthful of water typically measures 2-4 ounces. Go slowly. Sip water throughout the day. Be gentle. Do not drink too fast or drink too much at any one time. Space it out evenly throughout the day. If you have a history of urinary incontinence, other bladder problems, frequent bladder and urinary tract infections, or you are concerned about the increased amount of water you will be drinking, relax. This isn’t something I am telling you about because it sounded like a good idea. This is a powerful solution to all kinds of health problems. I have witnessed this in my own life and in the lives of my clients during the last eighteen years. As your kidneys and bladder become properly re-hydrated their normal functions will get better not worse and any associated problems in these areas will get better, not worse. Just follow these directions precisely. Be patient. Go slow but go steady.
- Drink at least 16oz of warm salted water within the first hour of waking up each day. Wake up within an hour of sunrise if at all possible. Our body co-exists in a natural symbiotic relationship with the seasons and the tides and the rising and setting of the sun. Natural healing co-exists in harmony with the forces at work in the natural world. These same forces are at work inside our bodies. Each morning our body is the most dehydrated, the most acidic and the most toxic it is usually going to be in every 24 hour cycle. This habit of starting each day by consuming 16oz of salted water within the first hour of waking up is a very important key to getting and maintaining the very best results possible from the watercure. If you weigh less than 150 pounds, then you can start your day with 12 ounces of salted water. (Yes, children too.) Use common sense. If this seems like too much for you, start with a smaller amount and build up to compliance levels gradually. If you have concerns call me. If you weigh more than 150 pounds drink 24oz within the first hour. If you weigh more than 200lbs drink 32oz within the first hour. If you weigh more than 300lbs call me or email me for advice.
- The amount of urine you eliminate should be equal to the amount of water you drink each day. It may take several days but not usually more than several weeks to see this balance happening with your body. You’ve never measured your outflow of urine? Neither had I. Join the club. Hey, we get to do all kinds of fun, strange and curious things in the name of natural healing. The color of the first morning urine can be moderately yellow, but the rest of the urine should be very light yellow to almost clear like the color of lite beer. Dark yellow to orange colored urine is a sure-sign of dehydration and possible kidney stagnation which is not good. If the color of your urine is currently orange or very dark yellow and it does not become significantly lighter within several days of doing the watercure, you should check with your medical doctor right away.
- You must consume half your body weight in ounces of water per day, each and every day to recover from the symptoms of long term, chronic, unintentional dehydration and to prevent it from happening again. Read that rather long sentence again and then several times after that, for it represents the most important part of the watercure recipe. You must consume the right quality water and you must consume the right amount or quantity of water. I have never been one for “set prescriptions” especially when it comes to our food and beverage intake. Set prescriptions are usually reserved for drugs, not for habits in the world of natural healing. However, there are always exceptions to the rules and this is absolutely one of those exceptional rules. If you exercise and sweat profusely you will need to drink more water. For every hour of vigorous activity and sweating you may need as much as 16-24oz more. If you drink alcohol or coffee or tea or take any diuretics, you may need to drink more water. 90 – 95% of your total daily intake of water should be consumed between 6am and 6pm as much as possible. (Or from when you wake up until just before your last meal of the day.) Drink a certain amount within the first hour. Be careful not to drink too much water during meals as it may dilute your digestive juices. A small amount of sipped water during a meal is fine. In the time after breakfast and before lunch plan to drink 20-24oz. In the time after lunch and before dinner plan to drink 24-32oz or more as needed based on body weight and activity level and the weather! These amounts, combined with the water consumed within the first hour should get you very close to half your body weight in ounces of water per day, before your evening meal. Be flexible. Find the balancing point for your body and your activity level.
Please do not underestimate the importance of being consistent with the correct amount of water you need to drink each day. Water and salt in combination promote and restore proper hydration levels within the cells and systems of the body. Proper daily hydration is the most significant biomodulating and homeostatic influence inside the human body. When the body is properly and consistently hydrated, everything else functions better. If you exercise and sweat, consume any diuretic beverages (alcohol, coffee, tea, soda, caffeine), then you will need to consume more water to make up. Your body loses 32 ounces of water each day just from breathing and sleeping and sitting around! If you exert yourself vigorously and sweat profusely, you will need to be very careful to restore proper hydration levels and then maintain proper hydration levels. Half your body weight in ounces of water is therefore, the absolute minimum of water you need each day. But don’t over-hydrate yourself either. Find the balance. Find the right amount of water for you given your unique circumstances and conditions and all will be well.
Let’s summarize the steps of the watercure recipe
- The water we drink must be free of all impurities. Sip, do not gulp your water.
- The water we drink must be warm. Body temperature water is best.
- Every ounce of water you drink must contain the Celtic sea salt for best results.
- Drink your warm salted water throughout the entire day. Space-it-out. Sip.
- Drink at least 16oz of warm salted water within the first hour of waking up each day based on body weight and activity level as outlined above.
- The outflow of urine should be equal in volume to the inflow of water. The color of your urine should be very light yellow to clear like the color of lite beer.
- You must consume half your body weight in ounces of warm salted water every day. If you weigh 200 pounds you need to drink 100 ounces of water. It’s just this simple. If you exercise and sweat profusely, you will need to drink more.
If you have any questions about how to implement the watercure recipe into your current diet and lifestyle, you can phone me during the day at 413-536-0275 or email me at russellmariani@verizon.net and visit: www.healingdigestiveillness.com
Updated and Revised for 2015
(this document is updated annually)
Why Is Proper Daily Hydration So Important?
You need to understand that your body is likely suffering from a condition of chronic unintentional dehydration. Remember, I said unintentional. This is not necessarily the primary cause of your uncomfortable digestive system problems and symptoms (or other health concerns), but it is a major contributing factor. When this dehydration problem is corrected, your symptoms could disappear altogether.
Proper daily hydration is transformational.
You have just read about the seven steps that make up the watercure recipe. You must follow this recipe as described above as soon as possible. This means that depending on your unique circumstances and conditions, it might take you three days to make this transition and it might take you three weeks. What matters most is that you get to 100% compliance as soon as you possibly can. Don’t rush, but don’t procrastinate either.
For the very best results possible, please order some Celtic sea salt right away. For the best prices and how to order, see the information below. Use whatever sea salt you have on hand, or get some at your local health food store, until you get the Celtic sea salt. Some natural food stores are now carrying the Celtic Salt; like Whole Foods Market. Or order online at www.selinanaturally.com/celtic-sea-salt
The Celtic sea salt contains many other minerals and trace minerals (over 40) and this allows for better absorption into the cells, better communication between cells, and the incalculable therapeutic effects of alkalinizing our blood and lymph. I keep using this term, alkalinizing, but what I really mean is stabilizing our body fluids at their proper pH levels. For example, the pH of human blood must remain constant at 7.35 to 7.45 for optimum health. The pH of ocean water is nearly identical to the pH of human blood. Imagine that.
The primary reason commercial table salt is so bad for us is that it is almost pure sodium chloride. It has been stripped of all other minerals. This kind of salt is not natural at all. It is highly processed and refined. It is even bleached to be white. No wonder it is toxic to the body! Naturally harvested salt from the ocean is gray and moist, not white and dry. So, when you hear about medical doctors and other health care providers warning you about salt, they are right but they are NOT REFERRING to organic quality, mineral-rich sea salt, they are referring to processed table salt.
When you use the Celtic sea salt in the correct amounts according to the watercure recipe you will not increase the problems normally associated with the excess use of commercial quality processed salt, you will decrease their likelihood of occurrence. This is because of the dramatic qualitative differences between organic quality sea salt and commercial quality highly processed and refined table salt. Use the sea salt. Don’t use the commercial table salt. If you are not sure what you should do, and have not been convinced by now of the therapeutic value of sea salt, please do not proceed. Call me. Email me.
I talk to people all the time who claim to drink tons of water daily. These same people will report astonishing results as soon as they start adding the organic sea salt per the instructions of the watercure recipe. The combination of water and salt is a powerful natural remedy for all kinds of problems.
The warm salted water we drink is absorbed into our body through the stomach. Follow these suggestions (sipping constantly throughout the day) and your stomach will not feel bloated or full. Your bladder will get stronger not weaker. Your bladder capacity will increase and if you suffer from the symptoms of frequent urination and/or urinary incontinence, they will subside and eventually disappear altogether. You must drink your water on an empty stomach and before meals. Wait about 15-20 minutes after meals before resuming your water intake or you may dilute your digestive juices, which is not good. Sometimes you need to wait longer. You decide.
There is still some debate about this last point but I would rather err on the side of caution and my last 18 years of observations and personal experience. As I have said many times already (throughout my book) when you are feeling healthy and whole and strong again, you will need to take all of my “suggestions” with a grain of salt and mostly rely on your own experimenting to ultimately find out what works best for you. But this advice is for down the road, well into Phase Two or even into Phase Three of your program. In Phase One, it is best to follow my suggestions as described here and in other documents and in my book.
Think of proper daily hydration as the foundation of your physical health habits.
Everything else you learn and do about Intestinal Regeneration and Functional Nutrition will be built upon this one simple habit. Everything else you do will work better if you practice this habit of proper daily hydration effectively. And everything else you do will work less effectively if you do not practice this daily hydration habit correctly and consistently. A word to the wise is sufficient.
If you have any questions about how to implement the watercure recipe into your current diet and lifestyle, you can phone me during the day at 413-536-0275 or email me at russellmariani@verizon.net and visit: www.healingdigestiveillness.com
Updated and Revised for 2015
(this document is updated annually)
| |||
WATER PURIFICATION
For more information or to order the point of use water filter that we both use and recommend please click here.
|
The Center for Functional Nutrition
Assisting in the quest for better health through better nutrition since 1980
