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Water II Good day to all our subscribers, I hope that by now you are all back to "normal" and settled into the daily routine, but..let's carry on with understanding why we need to drink so much liquid The fluids in our body are true life-keepers and can be compared to an ocean in which literally trillions of cells of cells, themselves largely water, are immersed. Within this "ocean" the materials we need for our survival are carried. In addition, the same system is responsible for carrying away wastes, such as nitrogen, unusable minerals and other toxic substances. The nutrients we need are broken down from foodstuffs in the digestive system. After they are broken down they are water-soluble. This means they can be mixed with water and dissolved in it. When the nutrients are put into solution, the pass through the capillaries (small tubes) within the intestinal wall. The blood flowing in these walls picks up the tiny particles of nutrients. Through the circulatory system, the nutrients are finally distributed by the extra cellular fluid bathing the cells. It is the responsibility of the circulatory system to distribute the nutrients and bathe the cells with them. The process by which needed material are absorbed (and also by which wastes leave the cell) are known by the name diffusion osmosis and active transport. Diffusion is merely the arbitrary movement of particles through the cell walls. The movement of the particles is limited by the size of the pores of the cell walls ( cellular membrane ) The cellular membrane allows only certain substances to pass through it and this is vital to the existence of the cell. Osmosis refers to the particular process in which the balance of salts takes place. Water tends to go where the greater concentration of salt lies. In addition to osmosis and diffusion, active transport occurs, in which electrolytes move across the cellular membrane from an area of lesser salt concentration to an area of greater salt concentration. Fluids constantly flow through the cellular membranes in both directions-both into and out of the cells- through this processes of diffusion, osmosis and active transport. However, the total amount of cellular fluid and the total amount of extra cellular fluid remain at a constant balance during this interchange. There is a real need for this precisely balanced flow of fluids between the cellular fluid and extra cellular fluid, so that the cells within the body do not continually shrink and expand. If the cells were immersed in distilled water, they would grow to the point of bursting because distilled water is so much less dense than the fluids in the cells! Conversely, if the cells were surrounded by a strong salt solution, the cells would lose their water and shrivel up. These examples are an impossibility in the functioning of our organism, but they do point to the need for the proper balancing of both the amounts and types of fluids to which our cells are exposed. Glucose, or blood sugar, is a primary nutritive factor derived from foods. It is the immediate fuel of the cells of the body and is distributed by the extra cellular fluids. The liver is responsible, among other things, for regulating the amount of blood sugar that reaches the cells. It also forms proteins from amino acids, which are then dissolved in the plasma. These plasma proteins float in the watery part of the blood and are easily absorbed by the individual cells, which break it down again into its component amino acids. Minerals can be directly absorbed from the small intestine and put into the bloodstream without undergoing chemical change. I don't know about you but this is enough material to absorb for 1 week. So, until next week, take care, The Crazy Nut team