In the previous update it is learned that we need 5-6 liters of water to be consumed a day to lead a healthy and disease free life. In this update let us try to understand why Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju insists on drinking 5-6 liters of water a day?
We all know that drinking more and more water is good for health. However, nobody knows when and how much to drink. According to Dr. Raju there is a particular way or plan to drink water. Even if you drink 5-6 liters of water without a proper plan, it does more harm than good. Many experts, news papers and periodicals write that we need to drink more water to keep the fluid levels of our body high. But none of them write exactly when and how much to drink. Dr. Raju is the only person to the best of my knowledge who writes and preaches how much water we need to drink a day, when and how.
According to Dr. Raju, we need to drink 5-6 liters of water a day to meet the requirements of the body and to keep the internal organs of our body clean. To understand this, let us try to understand the constitution our body and its functions first.
The Constitution and Functioning of our body:
Our body is constituted according the creation of Nature. As discussed in our earlier posts, our body possesses all the five elements of nature and it functions according to the equilibrium of nature.
In general our body performs two types of functions categorically (i) the day duty and (ii) the night duty. The body has to discharge these two duties categorically every day as long as we live. Our body would be healthy only if it discharges these two duties separately. If these duties are interchanged the body loses health and the life expectancy is reduced. Let us try to understand what these duties are:
1.Day Duty: The body discharges two types of functions during the day. The first one is to digest the food, transport this digested food to the cells, convert it to energy and move the undigested waste to the excretory system. The second duty is to produce millions of new cells in the body in place of millions of those cells, which die every day. If these two functions are to be discharged perfectly it needs ample water. Digestive juices can be produced only when we take appropriate amount of water. Digested food joins the blood and then to the cells, only when a large amount of water is present in the body. If there is proper proportion of water in the body, the food consumed by cells can be converted into energy. If all these functions are to be discharged properly we need to drink enough water in a right way. There is no use if we take water as and when we wish.
2. Night Duty: The body discharges two types of functions during night. The first one is to purge the waste material left inside the body after performing the day duty. Though most of the waste material produced during the day through consumption of food is purged through excretory system in the form of fasces, urine, sweat and carbon dioxide during day duty, the leftover waste is purged during night duty. Secondly, many cells in our body get diseased everyday. The body repairs them. Likewise, the body protects us from injuries, wounds and ill health. If the body has to purge the waste material through fasces, urine, sweat and carbon dioxide, it has to move these things and to move these things you need sufficient amount of water in the body. If you don’t take enough water, the waste material dries up in the body causing diseases.
To perform both these day and night duties perfectly one has to drink 5-6 liters of water everyday. More importantly, we are eating all kinds of junk and creating more problems for the body. As mentioned earlier, drinking 5-6 liters of water a day without proper plan does more harm than good to the body. Let us now try to find out how shall we drink this much of water and when.
When and how to drink water?
To derive full benefits of drinking 5-6 liters of water, we should divide the schedule into two parts: (i) Drinking water on empty stomach in the morning and (ii) Water to be taken during the day. Drinking water early in the morning is usually intended to clean out all the waste stored in our body. Drinking water during the day is to keep our fluid levels up and stable.
1. Drinking Water on empty stomach in the morning:The water consumed early in the morning is considered as part of the night duty. As soon as you wake up early in the morning, drink 1.5 liters of water on empty stomach. Many of you might bite your finger by learning this. If you are a beginner start with drinking half liter and gradually increase it to 1.5 liters. Some of you might wonder how any one can drink 1.5 liters of water at a single go. You definitely can drink 1.5 liters of water at one go because our stomach is capable of storing 2 kilos of water or matter. Once you begin drinking 1.5 liters of water every morning, I bet you are going to stick to it and feel the pleasure of drinking water.
Another question that might arise in your mind is why so much water and what is the use of it? As we discussed above, after performing day duty our body moves all the undigested waste within our body towards the anus & urinary bladder during the whole night as a part of its night duty. When you drink this much water the entire waste in the large intestine is pushed further for excretion. This water acts a flush and cleans your entire body purging all the undigested waste in the form of stool and urine.
You simply drink 1.5 liters of water as said above and walk around for a while. You immediately rush to the toilet and relax within a few minutes of time. You are going to enjoy the pleasure of purging the waste as soon as you follow this routine. Well… half an hour later, do some exercises, Yogasans, Pranayams or a bit of walk according to your leisure and stamina. 10 minutes after finishing your workout drink another 1 liter of water. You might again go to the toilet for cleansing the remaining waste in your large intestine. You are now ready for the breakfast. Give half an hour break and have your breakfast. If we take 2.5 to 3 liters of water on empty stomach the waste material from the body purges completely and keeps the body healthy. We have now finished the first part of drinking water.
2. Water to be taken during the day:Drinking water in the day is needed in view of the day duty. The water taken after breakfast to the end of the day till 6 or 7 Pm comes under this category. Out of 5-6 liters of water 2.5 liters of water is consumed in the morning as part of night duty. The remaining 3-3.5 liters of water has to be consumed throughout the day. Unlike the morning session, here we drink these 3-3.5 liters of water gradually throughout the day. An important condition applies here while drinking water during this session. Do not drink water while and immediately before and after eating food. Give ½ hour gap before and 2 hours gap after eating food. Drinking water while eating is a bad practice. You might be wondering what’s wrong in drinking water while eating. As all of u knows that the food we eat is digested by various gases and enzymes released right from our mouth to stomach and intestines. 2 liters of these gases and enzymes are released every time we eat to digest the food. Therefore when you drink water while eating, these gases wash out or evaporate resulting in indigestion and other gas troubles. The digestion process takes an average time of 2 to 4 hours depending on the type of food you eat. When you drink water while eating the gases gets dissolved and digestion time increases by 40 to 50% more; say 4 to 8 hours creating all sorts of discomfort.
I hope after knowing these facts, you too try to drink and make others drink 5-6 liters of water in a proper manner explained above for deriving maximum health benefits. Follow this routine for a few months and experience the difference in your life. If you feel benefited continue the process or else stop it over there. I know it’s not easy to begin straight away since we are used against to Dr. Raju’s principle of drinking water. Many of you find it difficult to stop drinking water while eating. There is every possibility of your food getting stuck in throat while eating. As it is a popularly known fact that the people of Andhra Pradesh don’t chew food; instead they swallow food. When you chew your food properly you don’t need any water while eating. Eat more vegetables and oil free food, you don’t need water. It is imperative for the body to discharge these two duties. If these two duties are to be discharged properly we have to divide the intake of water into two parts. If we feel that we have taken enough water in the morning, day duty may be hampered. Similarly if you take water in the day and stop taking in the morning the waste material which has to be discharged during night remains in the body and we may land in trouble. We should allow the body to discharge its duties during night and day. It is enough, if you supply water on time and the body looks after itself. However, if you are lazy or feel it burdensome to drink water, maintaining good health becomes difficult. When we do not follow the nature of the body life itself becomes a waste. There is no other easy way to good health in the world.
In my next update you are going to learn about the harm in drinking water while eating and the relationship of water with digestion. Keep watching for updates….
In my previous updates I published a few interesting things on water and its relationship with Man and Matter. Today I am about to discuss on the use of water on human body. The rule of blog goes; short and simple. But to the context and importance of the subject, I took up the opportunity to go overboard in writing this blog. I request all the readers to be patient and go through this valuable information by Dr. Mantena Satyanaryana Raju on drinking water.
We all know that water is every important for us and therefore drinking more water is good for our health. But how much of water we need to consume a day is a matter of question to most of the people. Some people say, eight glasses of water a day and some say three liters of water to be consumed a day. Where as most of the doctors opine that it is enough to replenish the water that is expended from our body. People are confused at the conflicting views from different quarters. Let us dwell into the issue.
According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju, we need to consume around 5-6 liters of water everyday. I bet, many of you would think it is impossible to drink so much of water. At least a human cannot drink that much of water. Initially I too differentiated with his opinion and believed drinking 5 – 6 liters of water a day is highly impossible for a human. But when I heard his full theory, I realized how wrong I was? And when I started drinking 5 liters of water a day, I realized the joy of drinking 5 to 6 liters of water a day. It is really hard to explain. It can be better understood by experience. Believe me; you are going to feel as if you have cracked the mantra (magic) of life and definitely encourage others to follow this. No person in this world apart from Dr. Raju emphasized so much on drinking 6 liters of water a day. And when Dr. Raju says something there has to be some reason and immense study on the subject. As all of you know that Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju first learns, practices, experiments and experiences himself before preaching us. He never says anything which he does not follow himself. That is the reason why he is so close to the truth. He strongly believes in the principle of self practice and preaching. Like all his other works, this theory of drinking 6 liters of water a day has a unique reason. Let us learn why and how he recommends drinking 5-6 liters of water a day so strongly, when many scientists and doctors differ in their opinion.
According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju, our body contains 70% of water and about 2.5 liters of water is spent daily from our body in the form of urine, excreta, sweat, digestion etc. The doctors who are well versed with physiology say that it is enough if the spent water is replenished to maintain the normal level of 68% water in the body for good health. If we take natural food it produces less waste and 2.5 liters of water would be enough to purge it out, with no scope for bad smell from saliva, urine, sweat and mouth.
The food we eat today consists of oil, salt, sugar, spices and many other ingredients to give different tastes. Digestion of this kind of cooked food takes a longer time leaving large undigested matter for excretion. Only 50% of the waste matter goes out of the body with the help of 2.5 liters of water and the rest 50% is deposited in the body. From the accumulated waste inside emanate bad smell from saliva, urine, sweat and mouth. We can clearly observe that 2.5 liters of water is not enough to push out the stored waste matter. The odor is the better indicator to denote whether the water required by the body is sufficient or not. Most of the people suffer from this bad odor, which is only due to lack of water in the body.
It is our responsibility to replenish 2.5 liters of water that is spent from the 68% of our body’s water and to keep it clean. To keep it clean we have to take more amount of water. Let us now think about what amount of water is necessary to meet these two requirements. In my previous updates we have discussed about the relationship between food and water.
The very physiology of human body has given first preference to air, second preference to water and third preference to food. We are aware how important air is for us to live. Our body contains two third of water and one third of matter. It means that the property of the body tells us that two third of importance is to be given for water and one third of importance to food. This is the secret of health.
If a person weighs 70 kilos, water would be 43 kilos of it. The rest of 27 kilos would be the matter created by food (muscles, veins, bones etc). Let us assess ourselves; which one of them is given more importance in our daily life – water or matter? How many times and how much we eat food and how many times and how much we drink water?
Think for a while how we altered the necessities of the body. We have pushed water to the third place that should actually be given second place and gave second place to food instead of keeping it at third place. Ignorance in this regard would not help. In order to maintain the ratio of 2:1 we have to drink water two times more than the food we eat. How simple it is? “Greatest truths are the simplest”.
Symptoms of Thirst:
When the water levels in the body falls, our body indicates through certain signals which we usually call it a thirst. According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju the body sends us seven types of signals when you lack water in the body. We all are familiar with these signals or symptoms of thirst but we are never bothered to observe them. Let us try to understand what these seven symptoms of thirst are:
The moment you notice the color of your urine is yellow, it means the water level in your body has been reduced. Your body is asking you for immediate replenishment of water. When you find this symptom you must immediately drink water. Your urine must always be white in color.
The moment you notice burning sensation while urinating, it means your body is in urgent need of water. This is the second signal your body gives you when it needs water. Instead of taking medicines and fruit juices drink water to replenish the lost water level.
The moment you notice an interrupted flow of urine, it means your body needs to be replenished with water. The urine should always flow free and uninterruptedly.
The moment you notice a bad odor in your urine, it means the water level in your body needs to be replenished immediately. Pus cells are formed resulting in bad odor and other urinary infections when you lack water in the body.
The moment you notice heavy sweating for every little physical effort you put in, it means you lack water in your body. The body is asking for replenishment of water level. I observed many people have this tendency of over sweating. They drink even less water instead of drinking more water. People suffering from over sweating also find the above 4 symptoms in them if they observe.
Frequent headache is another symptom of lacking water levels in the body. When there is not enough water in the body, all the waste remains in the blood stream. This effects the functioning of central nervous system. When the central nervous system is disturbed you get severe headaches.
The last and final symptom of lacking water levels in the body is dry throat. Every one of us is familiar with this symptom. Only when our throat dries we think we are thirsty and drink water. None of us bother about the six other symptoms of thirst.
How Dr. Raju derived on the theory of drinking 6 liters of water:
Since Dr. Raju is a medico in Naturopathy, he started experimenting by drinking water according to the opinion of doctors. Let us recollect what most doctors opine about the volume of water to be drunk a day. As discussed earlier, most doctors opine that it is enough to replenish the water that is expended from our body. Now the question is how much water we expend a day? It is learned that 2.5 liters of water is excreted from our body in the form of urine, excreta, sweat and digestion etc. Therefore Dr. Raju started his experiment by drinking 2.5 liters of water a day. When consumed 2.5 liters of water he noticed 6 out of seven symptoms of thirst in him. After couple of days he started drinking 3.5 liters of water. Here he noticed a few changes. Couple of symptoms of thirst vanished. Again couple of days later he consumed 4.5 liters of water. He noticed a positive change but another couple of symptoms were found intact. He then consumed 5 liters of water; he felt better but not satisfied enough. When he consumed 6 liters of water he finally noticed none of the above symptoms were available. He thus cracked the secret of required water levels in the body. Dr. Raju is the only person in the world who claims and preaches to drink around 5 to 6 liters of water a day. Dr. Raju doesn’t mean what doctors said was wrong. In fact, they are absolutely correct but on a condition that we eat all natural and healthy food. Thanks to the effects of modernization and change in our life styles we are becoming a slave to the junk fast food culture. If we eat all natural food, 2.5 liters of water a day is well enough.
After examining the effects of drinking 6 liters of water continuously for a long period of time, he came to a conclusion that he is been able to maintain the right balance in food and water.
As discussed above we need to maintain 2:1 ratio of water and food according the nature of our creation.
If we assume one third of food and two third of water, how many liters of water is necessary? We need food and water every day according to the physical labor we put in. The people who have to do physically exert needs more food. The people whose physical labor is less need less food. How do we decide the quantity of food and water? Basing on the intake of food or intake of water? Since we all love to eat, let us first decide the quantity of food and then decide the quantity of water. The amount of food intake differs from person to person. Right from a teenager to an Adult of any age normally takes about 2 kilos of food in a course of the day. So what should be his intake of water? The simple answer is two times more water than the amount of food. So five to six liters of water would do.
Those who put in more physical labor usually consume 2.5 to 3 kilos of food. Such people should take 7.8 liters of water. If we eat more the waste material produced in the body increases. It comes out along with water easily. We have been consuming about 2 to 3 kilos of food but not drinking more water because we did not know about it. Some take 2, 3 glasses of water, some others take 4 glasses and yet others take two or three liters. More food and less water! With less water inside, the waste matter gets solidified and does not move easily. Stagnation leads to diseases. In the beginning it is manifested in the form of some ailment and finally it becomes chronic. If the ratio of water intake is proper the body purges out waste material and keeps itself clean.
According to the property of the body let us start taking 5-6 liters of water. Out of this, 2.5 liters of water is necessary for the body and the rest of it will be used to keep clean the 68% of water which body contains.
It is the time to make few more changes in our life styles. Let us now start increasing water consumption in the next one or two months while taking the usual quantity of food. You would certainly notice the change and feel better. Then you decide yourself whether to take more water or discontinue. It is the body that shows the result.
So far we have learned how much water we need to drink a day. But there is a way of drinking this much of water. We need to drink 1.5 liters of water early morning as soon as you wake up. This helps in your bowel movement. It works a magic for people suffering from constipation. The rest of 4.5 liters all along the day regularly in small quantities ½ hour before and 2 hours after food. If you drink water while and immediately after eating food, some risks are associated with it. In my next updates you are going to learn when to drink water and the risks involved with drinking water while we eat. Keep watching the space for updates without missing the crucial information.
In my last update on Liver I am about to publish some valuable information on the diagnosis and treatment of Liver. Videos have been added for better understanding at the end of this article. I hope you find it useful.
How is cirrhosis diagnosed?
The diagnosis of cirrhosis is usually based on the presence of a risk factor for cirrhosis, such as alcohol use or obesity, and is confirmed by physical examination, blood tests, and imaging. The doctor will ask about the person’s medical history and symptoms and perform a thorough physical examination to observe for clinical signs of the disease. For example, on abdominal examination, the liver may feel hard or enlarged with signs of ascites. The doctor will order blood tests that may be helpful in evaluating the liver and increasing the suspicion of cirrhosis.
To view the liver for signs of enlargement, reduced blood flow, or ascites, the doctor may order a computerized tomography (CT) scan, ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or liver scan. The doctor may look at the liver directly by inserting a laparoscope into the abdomen. A laparoscope is an instrument with a camera that relays pictures to a computer screen.
A liver biopsy can confirm the diagnosis of cirrhosis but is not always necessary. A biopsy is usually done if the result might have an impact on treatment. The biopsy is performed with a needle inserted between the ribs or into a vein in the neck. Precautions are taken to minimize discomfort. A tiny sample of liver tissue is examined with a microscope for scarring or other signs of cirrhosis. Sometimes a cause of liver damage other than cirrhosis is found during biopsy.
How is the severity of cirrhosis measured?
The model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score measures the severity of cirrhosis. The MELD score was developed to predict the 90-day survival of people with advanced cirrhosis. The MELD score is based on three blood tests:
international normalized ratio (INR)—tests the clotting tendency of blood
bilirubin—tests the amount of bile pigment in the blood
creatinine—tests kidney function
MELD scores usually range between 6 and 40, with a score of 6 indicating the best likelihood of 90-day survival.
How is cirrhosis treated?
Treatment for cirrhosis depends on the cause of the disease and whether complications are present. The goals of treatment are to slow the progression of scar tissue in the liver and prevent or treat the complications of the disease. Hospitalization may be necessary for cirrhosis with complications.
Eating a nutritious diet:
Because malnutrition is common in people with cirrhosis, a healthy diet is important in all stages of the disease. Health care providers recommend a meal plan that is well balanced. If ascites develops, a sodium-restricted diet is recommended. A person with cirrhosis should not eat raw shellfish, which can contain a bacterium that causes serious infection. To improve nutrition, the doctor may add a liquid supplement taken by mouth or through a nasogastric tube—a tiny tube inserted through the nose and throat that reaches into the stomach.
Avoiding alcohol and other substances:
People with cirrhosis are encouraged not to consume any alcohol or illicit substances, as both will cause more liver damage. Because many vitamins and medications—prescription and over-the-counter—can affect liver function, a doctor should be consulted before taking them.
Treatment for cirrhosis also addresses specific complications. For edema and ascites, the doctor will recommend diuretics—medications that remove fluid from the body. Large amounts of ascitic fluid may be removed from the abdomen and checked for bacterial peritonitis. Oral antibiotics may be prescribed to prevent infection. Severe infection with ascites will require intravenous (IV) antibiotics.
The doctor may prescribe a beta-blocker or nitrate for portal hypertension. Beta-blockers can lower the pressure in the varices and reduce the risk of bleeding. Gastrointestinal bleeding requires an immediate upper endoscopy to look for esophageal varices. The doctor may perform a band-ligation using a special device to compress the varices and stop the bleeding. People who have had varices in the past may need to take medicine to prevent future episodes.
Hepatic encephalopathy is treated by cleansing the bowel with lactulose—a laxative given orally or in enemas. Antibiotics are added to the treatment if necessary. Patients may be asked to reduce dietary protein intake. Hepatic encephalopathy may improve as other complications of cirrhosis are controlled.
Some people with cirrhosis who develop hepatorenal failure must undergo regular hemodialysis treatment, which uses a machine to clean wastes from the blood. Medications are also given to improve blood flow through the kidneys.
Other treatments address the specific causes of cirrhosis. Treatment for cirrhosis caused by hepatitis depends on the specific type of hepatitis. For example, interferon and other antiviral drugs are prescribed for viral hepatitis, and autoimmune hepatitis requires corticosteroids and other drugs that suppress the immune system.
Medications are given to treat various symptoms of cirrhosis, such as itching and abdominal pain.
When is a liver transplant indicated for cirrhosis?
A liver transplant is considered when complications cannot be controlled by treatment. Liver transplantation is a major operation in which the diseased liver is removed and replaced with a healthy one from an organ donor. A team of health professionals determines the risks and benefits of the procedure for each patient. Survival rates have improved over the past several years because of drugs that suppress the immune system and keep it from attacking and damaging the new liver.
The number of people who need a liver transplant far exceeds the number of available organs. A person needing a transplant must go through a complicated evaluation process before being added to a long transplant waiting list. Generally, organs are given to people with the best chance of living the longest after a transplant. Survival after a transplant requires intensive follow-up and cooperation on the part of the patient and caregiver.
