Ready to make water your new health hero?
In this SUMMER REPLAY episode of the Believe Big Podcast, host Ivelisse Page dives deep into the world of hydration with special guest Jess Kelley, oncology nutrition consultant and founder of the Oncology Nutrition Institute. Get ready to bust hydration myths, decode the truth about alkaline water, and discover why proper hydration is not just a wellness trend—it's a vital tool for cancer patients and anyone wanting to thrive.
Jess brings her A-game, unpacking everything from how to tell if you're dehydrated to why minerals in water matter more than you think. She breaks down different water types (yep, they’re not all created equal), shares why your filtration system might be working against you, and gives game-changing tips to help you hydrate like a pro—even during cancer treatment.
You’ll even learn how to personalize your hydration plan and use at-home tests to track how your body’s doing. And just when you thought water couldn’t get more interesting, Jess introduces you to the therapeutic magic of hydrotherapy!
If you’ve ever underestimated the power of a glass of water, this episode will have you refilling your bottle and rethinking your habits. Tune in—your health (and your cells) will thank you.
Connect with Jess Kelley at the Oncology Nutrition Institute:
https://www.oncologynutritioninstitute.com/
Suggested Resource Links:
- BOOK: The Metabolic Approach to Cancer
- Mercola/Bush Hydration Podcast
- LMNT Electrolytes
- Trace Minerals Electrolytes
- Environmental Working Group (EWG)
- LINK: Home urinalysis strips
- LINK: Home urine sample collection cups
Note from Jess:
Carbonated vs Non-Carbonated Water and Hydration Status.
There are currently no studies showing both intracellular and extracellular hydration status when comparing carbonated vs non carbonated water. Intracellular hydration is more important to mitochondrial function than external. Because of this, currently it is widely accepted that both are equally hydrating. However, since we practice ancestral nutrition, we know that humans didn’t add carbonation = carbonic acid a weak acid, to water until about 100 years ago. It also REALLY depends on the sparkling water/carbonated water source. In general, plain mineral waters in glass are excellent. Those with any artificial or natural flavors, sugars, etc sho
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ivelisse Page (00:06):
Hi, I am Ivelisse Page and thanks for listening to
the Believe Big podcast, theshow where we take deep dive
into your healing with healthexperts, integrative
practitioners, biblical faithleaders, and cancer thrivers
from around the globe.
(00:34):
Welcome to today's episode onthe Believe Big podcast.
My name is Ivelisse Page and itis an honor to be with you
today.
We are so excited to welcomeback to our podcast, Jess Kelly
of the Oncology NutritionInstitute.
Jess is joining us today to talkabout water.
She is a master nutritiontherapist, oncology nutrition
(00:58):
consultant, a teacher, a writerand nutrition education program
developer.
Jess has been an oncologynutrition consultant for over a
decade and has extensiveexperience working with cancer
and chronic illness clients fromaround the globe.
She is also the co-author of twobooks, including the bestselling
(01:21):
Metabolic Approach to Cancerbook.
The Oncology Nutrition Instituteshe founded provides online
certification programs forprofessionals and education for
the public in therapeuticmetabolic nutrition.
Jess has completedcertifications in environmental
science, endocrinology and bloodchemistry analysis, methylation
(01:44):
and clinical nutrigenomics, andmuch more.
Welcome back to the show, Jess.
Jess Kelley (01:50):
It's great to be back, Ivelisse.
It's nice to see you.
What a pleasure.
Ivelisse Page (01:54):
Well, as you know, our listeners are always
interested in discovering whatour guest's favorite health tip
is.
The last time you joined us, youshared about hydration and that
how that was your favoritehealth tip, which led to today's
podcast.
But is that still your favoritetip or do you have another one
you can share?
Jess Kelley (02:14):
You know, I tend to be chock full of health tips
and, uh, whether people listenor not, that's a different,
different question.
But, you know, this week I wasthinking about it and one of my
biggest bits of nutrition adviceI tell people is that if you are
not hungry, don't eat.
And it's where, you know, we'revisiting after Thanksgiving
(02:36):
holiday last week and I justreally can't help but notice how
much focus there is, especiallyaround holiday times where it's
just sitting around eating anddrinking.
And while I love visiting withfamily and all that, I just feel
like it becomes one meal afterthe next, after the next.
And where people are findingthemselves eating when they may
(02:59):
not be hungry.
And I think getting back intouch with our natural hunger
sensation, which definitelysegues into dehydration, uh, is
really important.
And so if you're not hungry,don't eat.
We force food, we force snacks,we force meals.
We think we should be eating allday long.
So yeah, kind of basic, butyeah.
Ivelisse Page (03:19):
Does that apply to kids too?
I mean, I'm one of those where Igrew up in a home where my
parents said, until you finishthat plate, you're gonna sit
there.
And I would sit there for hours.
And so not, I mean, I'm joking,but uh, you know, is, is that
for kids too?
Or what are your thoughts onthat?
Jess Kelley (03:37):
You know that that situation causes more
psychological damage that I'vehad to deal with with people
over the years.
It's, uh, um, it's no.
If kids aren't hungry, theyshould not eat.
You can tell, you know, as aparent, if your kid is melting
down, they're hungry or tired.
So if you know that your kid is,is hungry, you know, they're
(04:01):
little and they don't know howto regulate it, of course, but
if forcing food when you're nothungry is totally goes against
tuning into our own biology ofwhat our bodies need and what we
feel.
So, you know, kids, they'regrowing.
They certainly need, oh,different, uh, caloric amounts
(04:21):
and frequencies than adults.
I see it with kids that say theycan't go at five minutes without
a snack.
So you know this chronicsnacking is that is too much.
So if your child's had enoughfood at breakfast, they don't
need a snack 20 minutes later,that could be because they're
bored or they've just come off ascreen and their dopamine levels
(04:42):
have dropped and it makes themhungry.
So there's a lot of differentbiochemical influences that can
trigger, you know, oh, I shouldeat because they're trying to
get dopamine back up.
So.
Ivelisse Page (04:55):
Yeah, that's great.
And you know, maybe we'll haveyou back and really talk in
depth about fasting and itsbenefits of it.
We're learning so much aboutthat in the last few years and
the importance of that forhealth.
Um, but we'll leave that foranother day.
But today I wanted to make surewe have so many questions that
came in Yeah.
About hydration and water.
(05:15):
Right.
When you were last on that, wesaid, okay, we're gonna do a
separate podcast just onhydration, so, so let's start
with that.
So how crucial is properhydration for overall health?
Jess Kelley (05:27):
You know, over the years in the 15 years I've been
writing about and researchingand practicing and teaching
about nutrition, I always comeback to wa.
Water is the master nutrient.
We need it in far more amountsat a far greater frequency than
any of the other macronutrients,carbohydrates, fats, proteins,
(05:50):
micronutrients, you know,vitamins and minerals.
Water is required for just aboutevery single biochemical
reaction and in the human body,and so water is, it's the most
often overlooked, but it is themost important nutrient on the
table when it comes to nutritiontherapy and estimates are that
(06:10):
about 75% of Americans aredehydrated.
So it's critically important andphysicians typically aren't
asking their patients abouthydration status.
So hopefully, you know, withpodcasts like this, we get that
out a little bit more to havethat part of the intake process.
Ivelisse Page (06:29):
So, so let's go like real basic for people that
are listening to this, what aresome of the signs that should,
people should be aware of thatmay indicate that they are
dehydrated?
Jess Kelley (06:38):
Yeah.
Dehydration by the way, happensreally easily.
So even a 2% loss can result inimpairment.
And so, what can happen as faras short term?
Fatigue is one of the mostcommon.
Fatigue is one.
Hunger.
The sensation for thirst andhunger are the same.
(07:03):
Um, we also see mood changeslike irritability, depression,
and also delirium.
So especially with our agingpopulation where we're seeing a
lot of these acute, uh,dementia, delirium.
Those are, can be symptoms ofdehydration.
(07:25):
And so it's very, very importantto tune into anytime someone's
exhibiting any type of, youknow, cognitive impairment.
Headaches are huge.
Headaches are one of thebiggest, you know, gosh, or
constipation.
Um.
Those are gonna be some of the,the first signs that we see and,
(07:49):
and that can happen in as quickas, you know, 24 hours.
We can only survive withoutwater for three days.
So dehydration happens veryquickly.
It happens from just sleeping atnight.
As we respirate, we lose a poundof water almost a night, you
know, people.
Wow.
Yeah.
So it doesn't really take muchfor this to happen and happen
(08:11):
quickly.
So when we see headaches, whenwe see constipation, when we see
delirium, confusion, um,agitation, and just overall
fatigue, those are, that's whatyou're gonna see first When it
comes to sort of long-termdehydration, long-term sort of
chronic dehydration, um, it'sbeen linked to several different
(08:36):
metabolic conditions because ourmitochondria actually uses the
hydrogen from water.
So remember that the chemicalcomposition of water is H2O, so
two hydrogen and one oxygen.
So, um, in order for ourmitochondria to produce energy
or ATP, it actually useshydrogen.
(08:58):
So in states of dehydration, um,you know, the hydrogen supply is
more limited, but there's alsonot enough water to sort of
transport, um, potentiallymitochondrial damaging toxins
away from the cell.
So, hydration and mitochondrialfunction are critically linked.
(09:18):
There was a great report thatjust came out co-authored by Dr.
Mercola and Dr.
Zach Bush about medicmitochondria and dehydration and
so these long-term metabolicdisorders, cancer.
Alzheimer's, diabetes, we shouldbe looking at hydration status.
(09:38):
So it is a big, big deal.
So
Ivelisse Page (09:42):
I would love that, link so that we can add
that in the show.
Jess Kelley (09:45):
Lemme send show notes.
Yeah.
Ivelisse Page (09:47):
And is there anything, is there any such
thing as too much water?
So my, my husband and some myboys are doing the 75-Day-Hard.
This is Jimmy's second timearound doing it.
And it was really good for beingfocused and really setting goals
but one of the five things thatthey have to do is that they
have to drink 120 ounces ofwater a day.
And I know that it's typical,you're supposed to drink half of
(10:10):
your body weight in water a day.
So is there something as toomuch water'cause that would be
way too much for me?
Jess Kelley (10:17):
Yes.
So definitely we see hypohydration that can happen in
athletes.
So what happens is, is that whenyou sweat during these intense
exercises, you're also losingelectrolytes.
So when you just replenish waterwithout electrolytes, especially
sodium, potassium, magnesium,all these electrolytes that get
(10:41):
excreted through sweat, thenpeople can have too much
hydration.
So not only is it important to,to replenish water, but to make
sure that in these athletic, youknow, high output, 75 mile
races, that they're reallygetting on board some good
electrolytes as well.
We like the LMNT brand.
(11:01):
I don't get any kickbacks fromthem, but it's nice'cause it's
not sugary tasting.
But I think electrolytes arereally important and just
imagine that the averageestimate is that you're gonna
burn around 32 ounces of waterduring intense exercise.
You know, every person'sdifferent, so, but they're gonna
be burning through a lot ofwater, so that, that's actually
(11:21):
a fairly conservative estimatefor that much of a exertion.
So, yeah, I wouldn't be worriedabout that at all.
Ivelisse Page (11:30):
Okay.
And I know, you know, you justmentioned the LMNT.
Yeah.
We don't get any kickbacks fromthem either.
But I was looking, you know, oneof the things, especially living
here in Colorado, the elevationand it's important that we get
even more so easily hydrated,uh,'cause of the dryness here.
Yeah.
And so I was trying to even findat Whole Foods a good
(11:50):
electrolyte that wasn't filledwith so much sugar.
And I was shocked to read allthe labels of so many
electrolytes that people areputting in that is more than a
can of soda.
So it was nice to find somethinglike the LMNT that does not.
Are there any others that youhave found that don't have the
sugar?
'Cause, you know, as cancerpatients, yeah.
Um, it's really important, youknow, to, for everyone to
(12:14):
minimize the amount of sugar intheir diet, right?
Uh, so you're trying to dosomething positive and you don't
want on the second hand to dosomething negative for yourself.
Jess Kelley (12:21):
Right.
Yeah, it is, it is tricky.
And you're right, a lot of thecommercial ones are kind of
junk.
So the other one that I like isTrace Minerals.
They have drops that aretasteless, you know, just a 10
20 drops in a glass of water,which I recommend people do on a
day-to-day basis.
And you know, the other reason Ilike this particular brand is
(12:41):
because it contains lithium.
So the more we've been lookinginto water and looking into some
of these mitochondrial metabolicdiseases, especially in, you
know, the mental health area.
So lithium is an essential traceelement and it's found or
supposed to be found in mostwater sources.
However, it's not, and therehave been several large
(13:05):
epidemiological studies thathave found a correlation between
the amount of lithium anddrinking water supply and
suicide in the generalpopulation.
Now there's actually a largepush to start adding lithium
into public water supply in thesame way that they added
fluoride, you know, years ago toprevent dental cavities.
(13:25):
So lithium is incrediblyimportant and it's really
missing from a lot of water.
You know, whether people get itfrom tap water or city water,
you know, city water or wellwater or bottled water or canned
water.
So that's definitely, that's myfirst choice is gonna be the
Trace Minerals drops'cause ofthe lithium content, uh, because
(13:49):
that's missing out of a lot of,most commercial ones don't have
the lithium, but that'scritically important.
Ivelisse Page (13:55):
Wow, I didn't know that.
That's amazing.
Now, I, I have never had, uh,issues getting an iv, you know,
put in.
Uh, but the last two times, thetechnician that comes to my
house to give me my nutritionalIVs, um, he, my veins were
failing and I guess it was justtoo many blood draws that I had
before my surgery.
Um, and they are just kind ofsaying, okay, enough.
(14:18):
But the person who does themtold me that if I drink several
ounces of water with some seasalt or electrolytes the night
before that it would help themto be able to put in IVs easier.
Um, I know that that's somethingsuper important for patients as
they're getting blood draws orgoing in for procedures and
things.
Is that something that you havefound with the clients you work
(14:39):
with that is helpful?
Jess Kelley (14:41):
Absolutely.
So, yeah, so when you thinkabout dehydration, because it,
it, it helps to maintain the,your vascular integrity, right?
So humans are between, you know,adults or anywhere between 65
and 75% water.
So even a little bit ofdehydration is gonna make those
(15:01):
veins a little more concave,right?
So it is very important,especially for the folks that
are getting lots of IVs done, tomake sure that they're really
well hydrated, going into thosedraws to prevent multiple pokes
and uh, yeah.
Too much of the poking.
Ivelisse Page (15:21):
Yes, yes.
Okay.
Well good.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That was a tip that I had neverheard, and it's a great tip and
sure.
I did that the next time and Ihad no issues.
Oh, so, uh, wanted to ask youabout that on our call.
Absolutely.
On our podcast today.
Yeah.
So I also.
Jess Kelley (15:35):
Go ahead.
Well, the same goes too, ifyou're getting any other type of
IV solution coming into yourbody.
So chemotherapy, um, you know,for example, I always say that
the solution to pollution'sdilution, you're gonna get that
moving around your body andfiltered out much more
efficiently and effectively ifyou go into those in a hydrated
(15:57):
state.
So really important for peoplewho are in treatment to think
about every time they're goingin, to make sure that they are
optimally hydrated because it'sso easy for our chronically ill
folks to get dehydrated.
They're nauseous, they don'twanna drink water, maybe.
So I have people just make a, abig thing of ginger tea ahead of
(16:19):
time and just add some of thatinto your water.
Uh, you know, it's just any waythat you can get it in, it's
gonna be really helpful.
But yeah, in, in addition togetting IVs, but any type of
intravenous treatment, it willbe helpful.
Ivelisse Page (16:34):
Okay.
Well, thank you.
And I remember you telling uslast time that there was a
website that we can check thequality of the water in our
area.
What, what is that website forpeople to check?
Yes.
To determine what filter is bestfor their area.
Jess Kelley (16:47):
Yeah, so the Environmental Working Group,
they put out this incrediblyvast database where you can plug
in your zip code and it willgive you a readout of all of the
components found in your publicsupply of drinking water.
And it is fascinating how manythings are in there that are
(17:11):
above recommended amounts.
Um, but then it also reallyhelps for people to figure out
what kind of filter system theyshould get.
So if they are really high inwhatever, I, for example, I'm on
a well.
So, but in my area it's veryhigh in iron and so I have to
have a, a specific iron filterfor that.
(17:35):
Um, but yeah, these publicwater, uh, public water systems
are really quite, can be reallyquite toxic, so it's worth
people plugging it in.
Go to the Environmental WorkingGroup water site and uh, and
just seeing what's going on intheir individual area,
especially if they live in anagricultural area because a lot
(17:59):
of the fertilizer, pesticides,those type of things are going
to infiltrate into thegroundwater system.
And so, um, it's really, I mean,everyone should check, but I
just think it's really importantto take a peek there.
So.
Yeah.
Ivelisse Page (18:16):
Yes.
Yeah.
I have the Aqua Sana whole homewater filter.
Great.
'Cause it's not only the waterthat we're drinking, but it's
what we're showering with, whatwe're watering our plants, our
gardens with and Right.
So many aspects, you know, that,that affects our health.
Jess Kelley (18:29):
Right.
And.
Ivelisse Page (18:30):
At the B Believe Big office, we have the Berkey
'cause we're not gonna install asystem in that, in a rental
place.
But, um, but what can you tellus about reverse osmosis
systems?
I've heard, you know, manypeople talk about that.
Jess Kelley (18:45):
Those are great.
What a good baseline system isto do a reverse osmosis.
It really does get a lot of theheavy metals and a lot of these
other things.
So that's, that's typically whatwe recommend.
If you're gonna be looking intoa filtration system, is gonna be
like a whole house, reverseosmosis.
Um, and then, and then, youknow, bringing on board some of
(19:06):
your mineral drops to make surethat you're re mineral
mineralizing.
Mineralizing.
That's today's tongue twister.
Yes.
Um, the water after you filterit out.
But, um, yeah, it is, uh, ingeneral the reverse osmosis
system is wonderful.
And as you mentioned, it's notjust what you're drinking, but
(19:26):
we really, you know, this otherbenefit to water is using it
externally.
So hydrotherapy.
So if you're taking a shower,and this is, people can do this
for free at home.
So you're standing in yourshower and you're alternating
between hot and cold, and you'reactivating your immune system
when you're doing that.
(19:47):
You know, research has shownthat your skin absorbs a lot of
water and obviously things thatare applied to it.
So, um, especially, you know, ifyou're taking a therapeutic
bath, which we recommend, Epsomsalt baths, chamomile baths, all
those different things, makingsure that the water that you are
on the outside because it willtransdermally absorb.
(20:08):
So making sure that you have awhole house system is really
important.
Ivelisse Page (20:12):
Yeah.
How, how long do you recommendthe cold and then the hot
switching when you're in theshower?
Jess Kelley (20:17):
Ooh, as long as you can take it, I don't know, 30
seconds.
It, once you start starting outis hard, but the more you
practice, you can increaseduration.
So, if people start out cold,cold, cold, and they're like, do
it for five seconds, and they goback to warm, and then you stay
warm for, you know, 20 secondsand then cold, cold, cold.
It's wonderful.
(20:38):
Do that a few times.
It really makes a bigdifference.
People who are having problemssleeping.
And this goes back to these oldnight cures, these water cures
that originated outta Germanyhundreds of years ago.
Cold water applied below theknee before bed can really
assist with lowering bloodpressure, getting people to
(21:01):
de-stress, helping to reduce hotflashes before bed.
So, um, it's really not youknow, just cold water therapy
below the knee before bed canhave massive therapeutic
benefits.
Wow.
So, yeah.
Ivelisse Page (21:15):
Wow.
I didn't know that.
I had thought you had to be likeunder, like from your neck down
No.
In order to gain the benefits.
Jess Kelley (21:21):
No, no.
There's a lot to be said.
So think about that cold kind ofdrawing out the bottom of you.
So, um, you don't have to befully immersed.
In fact, there's a lot of, um,therapeutic spas in throughout
Germany and, and other placesthat have, are specific to body
parts.
So below the knee or just thechest or, um, you know, heads.
(21:43):
So, yeah.
Ivelisse Page (21:44):
Fantastic.
Well that's good for me'causeJimmy does the cold plunges all
the time.
Yeah.
And loves'em.
But I'm like, the cold is justsomething that I have to really
work on getting into.
But I do do that once I leavethe sauna, I kind of go in and
get, take a cold or shower.
Yeah.
Um, but I like the below theknee I can, I can handle that.
Yeah.
So that, that's a good, that's agood tip for me too.
(22:06):
Yeah.
So.
What about alkaline watersystems that increase the pH?
I've seen those around a lot ofhealth bloggers talking about
that.
Or the ionized hydrogen, watersystems.
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care together.
Jess Kelley (23:53):
There are so many different types of water.
Ivelisse Page (23:57):
Yes.
That's why I wanted to ask you.
Jess Kelley (23:58):
I know.
It's been amazing, you know, uh,deuterium, depleted water,
structured water, hydrogen wa Imean, so many different things.
And I think, you know, it, itbecomes, uh, an economic
conversation for most people,and I feel like, you know, we're
so much of this health isunattainable to lower income
(24:21):
folks because they're like, oh,really, a$500 water system?
Gimme a break.
It's a little much.
Now this whole concept aroundalkalinity is, um.
Tumors create their ownmicroenvironment.
So whatever water you drink isnot going to, uh, change the
microenvironment, the pH of thattumor.
(24:42):
You have different phsthroughout your whole body, so
the pH in your stomach is gonnabe really acidic in order to
break breakdown protein.
It's gonna be a very differentacidity in your kidneys and your
urethras.
You're gonna have different pHand you're designed to have
different pH throughout yourwhole body.
And so thinking that, uh, a pHof a water is going to kind of
(25:08):
create a big impact, not great.
So what I don't like aboutalkaline water is that we're
removing a lot of thoseessential minerals.
And minerals are really, they'rerequired, they're essential to
the body.
Whereas our pH is going tofluctuate and it should
metabolically, but what we needto have is those minerals.
(25:29):
So, um, alkaline water, no, Idon't, we need water kind of in
its purest form, which will haveall of those essential and trace
minerals.
Um, yeah, so I think really whatwe're focusing on the most, I
mean, of course adding morehydrogen.
Great, because as I talkedabout, our mitochondria use
(25:51):
hydrogen in order to produceATP, which is important, and
dehydration can contribute tomitochondrial sluggishness.
But as a whole, I think that ifpeople are getting a pretty good
filter system, we're moreconcerned about the toxins that
are found in water.
It's also found that three infive people are getting their
(26:12):
water from plastic water bottlesor canned water bottles.
So there's this huge seltzerwater trend because, you know,
we hear clinically is people arelike, I don't like the taste of
water.
It's boring.
I have a dime for that one.
But it's true.
So people are getting these zerocalorie, whatever, uh, cans of
(26:32):
water that have eitherartificial or natural flavors.
And I think we're making it too,there's, there's a tendency in
nutrition to make things alittle too complicated.
So if we can just get back tonot drinking out of plastic
because it's got BPA and otherendocrine disrupting chemicals,
not drinking out of cans becausecans are going to also have
(26:54):
leach different types ofchemicals, but also some of
these na quote unquote naturalflavors.
That could be anything.
It's not tightly regulated andartificial flavors and some of
these other artificialsweeteners and things like that.
So I think it's more if you'regetting a good water out of the
tap and you're running itthrough a nice filter system and
(27:15):
then you do some testing on itto make sure there's no residual
type of, you know, there's a lotof public water supplies that
will offer you a home test kitfor 35 bucks.
So just knowing what's in yourown water system I think is
really helpful.
Um, in general, I don'trecommend really high end or
expensive filtration systems orwater additions.
(27:37):
I think if people really want toexplore deuterium depleted water
or uh, hydrogen additions, theycertainly can, but it's not sort
of frontline where we go withwater.
Ivelisse Page (27:48):
Yes.
You just mentioned somethingthat just kind of struck me
'cause it's one of my favoritethings and it's sparkling water.
I just love mineral water and sois mineral water, not part of
the daily water intake that weshould be drinking each day,
even if it's in a glass, likethe Glass Pellegrino, or
there's, uh, the one that I getat Whole Foods, it's in a glass
(28:09):
bottle.
It starts with a GI can'tremember the name right now.
I'm not talking about like therec LaCroixs or the Waterloos
and things like that, thatyou're talking, that are in a
can.
So what are your thoughts on thedifferent sparkling waters that
everyone so loves?
Jess Kelley (28:24):
Well, um, when we carbonate water, we're adding a
carbon molecule, so, or carbonmolecules.
So that's gonna change thechemical structure of water.
It is not as hydrating asstraight up water.
So it's nice to have a balanceof flat water and water with
some carbonation.
If you're just strictly doingcarbonation, you might find, you
(28:47):
know, some people get like mildheadaches more frequently than
they should, even though they'redrinking enough water.
Um, we have to just kind of keepan eye out for what's going on
with that added carbon.
Carbon molecule addition to thebubbly waters.
So there's, you know, for themost part, a sparkling mineral
water that has nothing added,aside from just sparkling
(29:09):
mineral water in a glass.
Fantastic.
I drink those all the time andthere are a lot of great brands
of canned, you know, sparklingwaters that don't have natural
or artificial flavors.
They're out there too, but it isworth reading the label on your
waters.
Um, you know, in thinking aboutwhat it comes from, and I
definitely recommend that peopledo have a balance, you know,
(29:31):
especially first thing in themorning to have flat water with
some minerals in it, becausewe're typically most dehydrated
when we wake up in the morningbecause we've been respirating
all night.
So it's a really nice time tohave, you know, a little warm
water with perhaps a littlelemon juice or a little addition
of a therapeutic tea is a greattime to add that into your flat
(29:52):
water.
If you don't like the taste ofwater, that's a great place.
You know, everyone's like, drinkyour five cups of green tea a
day, and people are like, nothappening.
So you make a big container ofgreen tea, keep it in the fridge
and you add a little green teainto your water in the morning
to give it a taste.
I love Jasmine green tea.
It's just a really lovely tasteand so trying to mix up, if you
(30:14):
love mineral sparkling water, Ithink it's important to, to
have, uh, flat water as well.
Ivelisse Page (30:19):
Okay.
Well that, that's, that's reallygood confirmation there.
Yeah.
I know that our time is alreadyquickly coming to end.
I can't believe how fast it hasgone, but, um, I, I wanted to
ask you, given your expertise inindividualized nutrition plans,
you know that you teach thosewho go through your program, how
do you tailor hydrationrecommendations for different
(30:41):
needs, such as during cancertreatment versus recovery versus
long-term health maintenance?
Jess Kelley (30:47):
Sure.
You know, it really, obobviously depends on the person
and it depends on what they'regoing through.
There's some really inexpensiveat home urine strips that you
can get and some cups that youcan get out.
I keep'em in my bathroom all thetime.
Anyone who comes over, I'm like,you wanna pee in a cup for me?
So basically you could just do alittle dipstick and a test
(31:08):
specific gravity, which is ahydration marker so people can
get a sense of if they're reallydehydrated or not.
If people don't wanna do that athome, as a general guideline, we
try to get people to do, youknow, for most adults it's about
80 ounces of water a day, sotrying to make sure that that's
happening.
So, you know, people walkthrough the door and they have
this complex list ofsupplements.
(31:29):
They have all these questions,and you can spend 35 minutes as
we just did, just talking aboutwater.
The water that makes theircoffee, the water that makes
their tea, the water that makestheir, you know, water is the
master nutrient.
So making sure that people arereally hydrated is gonna be
super important.
Anything that's gonna dehydratethese folks, especially if
(31:50):
they're having side effects fromtreatments where they may have
diarrhea or vomiting or, a lotof people end up with some
dysphagia where they're havingtrouble swallowing and they're
getting dehydrated.
Like I said, dehydration canhappen rapidly within a day or
two.
So we're keeping a very closeeye on those people.
And if we can get them to dothese little at-home hydration
(32:11):
tests, that's really helpful toget a look.
And then even, you know, if wecan get people to get IV fluid
replacement with some of theseelectrolytes, it's really
helpful too.
That's why they do it in thehospital.
We encourage our practitionersto take a lot of time with
their, with their clients, withtheir patients, to talk to them
deeply about their water, howmuch, what source, you know, all
(32:34):
that.
It's really criticallyimportant.
Ivelisse Page (32:36):
Wow.
Yeah.
That's great.
And can you send us the link toYeah, the hydration little
checks.
I think I'm gonna buy some justto curiosity.
Oh yeah,
Jess Kelley (32:44):
yeah.
You would love that.
Oh yeah.
No, it's so, and it tests pH andit tests ketones and it te does
some other, um, things.
I think it's like 25 bucks onAmazon.
So I'll send you those links inthese little pee cups that I get
at home and they're nice tohave.
It's a real.
It's a conversation starteraround the holidays.
Ivelisse Page (32:58):
Yeah.
Hey,
Jess Kelley (32:59):
now
Ivelisse Page (32:59):
the holidays are coming for people.
Love that.
Hey, come, come over here.
I gotta check something on you.
And Jess, thanks so much forjoining with us again today.
Uh, we'll look forward totalking to you about fasting or
another one of your amazing,knowledgeable topics that you
have and, uh, really greatlyappreciate your time.
Jess Kelley (33:18):
Thank you Ivelisse, and thanks for all the great
work you guys do at Believe Big.
Ivelisse Page (33:29):
If you enjoyed this episode and you'd like to
help support our podcast, pleasesubscribe and share it with
others.
Be sure to visit BelieveBig.orgto access the show notes and
discover our bonus content.
Thanks again and keep BelievingBig!
Hi, I am Ivelisse Page and thanks for listening to
the Believe Big podcast, theshow where we take deep dive
into your healing with healthexperts, integrative
practitioners, biblical faithleaders, and cancer thrivers
from around the globe.
(00:34):
Welcome to today's episode onthe Believe Big podcast.
My name is Ivelisse Page and itis an honor to be with you
today.
We are so excited to welcomeback to our podcast, Jess Kelly
of the Oncology NutritionInstitute.
Jess is joining us today to talkabout water.
She is a master nutritiontherapist, oncology nutrition
(00:58):
consultant, a teacher, a writerand nutrition education program
developer.
Jess has been an oncologynutrition consultant for over a
decade and has extensiveexperience working with cancer
and chronic illness clients fromaround the globe.
She is also the co-author of twobooks, including the bestselling
(01:21):
Metabolic Approach to Cancerbook.
The Oncology Nutrition Instituteshe founded provides online
certification programs forprofessionals and education for
the public in therapeuticmetabolic nutrition.
Jess has completedcertifications in environmental
science, endocrinology and bloodchemistry analysis, methylation
(01:44):
and clinical nutrigenomics, andmuch more.
Welcome back to the show, Jess.
Jess Kelley (01:50):
It's great to be back, Ivelisse.
It's nice to see you.
What a pleasure.
Ivelisse Page (01:54):
Well, as you know, our listeners are always
interested in discovering whatour guest's favorite health tip
is.
The last time you joined us, youshared about hydration and that
how that was your favoritehealth tip, which led to today's
podcast.
But is that still your favoritetip or do you have another one
you can share?
Jess Kelley (02:14):
You know, I tend to be chock full of health tips
and, uh, whether people listenor not, that's a different,
different question.
But, you know, this week I wasthinking about it and one of my
biggest bits of nutrition adviceI tell people is that if you are
not hungry, don't eat.
And it's where, you know, we'revisiting after Thanksgiving
(02:36):
holiday last week and I justreally can't help but notice how
much focus there is, especiallyaround holiday times where it's
just sitting around eating anddrinking.
And while I love visiting withfamily and all that, I just feel
like it becomes one meal afterthe next, after the next.
And where people are findingthemselves eating when they may
(02:59):
not be hungry.
And I think getting back intouch with our natural hunger
sensation, which definitelysegues into dehydration, uh, is
really important.
And so if you're not hungry,don't eat.
We force food, we force snacks,we force meals.
We think we should be eating allday long.
So yeah, kind of basic, butyeah.
Ivelisse Page (03:19):
Does that apply to kids too?
I mean, I'm one of those where Igrew up in a home where my
parents said, until you finishthat plate, you're gonna sit
there.
And I would sit there for hours.
And so not, I mean, I'm joking,but uh, you know, is, is that
for kids too?
Or what are your thoughts onthat?
Jess Kelley (03:37):
You know that that situation causes more
psychological damage that I'vehad to deal with with people
over the years.
It's, uh, um, it's no.
If kids aren't hungry, theyshould not eat.
You can tell, you know, as aparent, if your kid is melting
down, they're hungry or tired.
So if you know that your kid is,is hungry, you know, they're
(04:01):
little and they don't know howto regulate it, of course, but
if forcing food when you're nothungry is totally goes against
tuning into our own biology ofwhat our bodies need and what we
feel.
So, you know, kids, they'regrowing.
They certainly need, oh,different, uh, caloric amounts
(04:21):
and frequencies than adults.
I see it with kids that say theycan't go at five minutes without
a snack.
So you know this chronicsnacking is that is too much.
So if your child's had enoughfood at breakfast, they don't
need a snack 20 minutes later,that could be because they're
bored or they've just come off ascreen and their dopamine levels
(04:42):
have dropped and it makes themhungry.
So there's a lot of differentbiochemical influences that can
trigger, you know, oh, I shouldeat because they're trying to
get dopamine back up.
So.
Ivelisse Page (04:55):
Yeah, that's great.
And you know, maybe we'll haveyou back and really talk in
depth about fasting and itsbenefits of it.
We're learning so much aboutthat in the last few years and
the importance of that forhealth.
Um, but we'll leave that foranother day.
But today I wanted to make surewe have so many questions that
came in Yeah.
About hydration and water.
(05:15):
Right.
When you were last on that, wesaid, okay, we're gonna do a
separate podcast just onhydration, so, so let's start
with that.
So how crucial is properhydration for overall health?
Jess Kelley (05:27):
You know, over the years in the 15 years I've been
writing about and researchingand practicing and teaching
about nutrition, I always comeback to wa.
Water is the master nutrient.
We need it in far more amountsat a far greater frequency than
any of the other macronutrients,carbohydrates, fats, proteins,
(05:50):
micronutrients, you know,vitamins and minerals.
Water is required for just aboutevery single biochemical
reaction and in the human body,and so water is, it's the most
often overlooked, but it is themost important nutrient on the
table when it comes to nutritiontherapy and estimates are that
(06:10):
about 75% of Americans aredehydrated.
So it's critically important andphysicians typically aren't
asking their patients abouthydration status.
So hopefully, you know, withpodcasts like this, we get that
out a little bit more to havethat part of the intake process.
Ivelisse Page (06:29):
So, so let's go like real basic for people that
are listening to this, what aresome of the signs that should,
people should be aware of thatmay indicate that they are
dehydrated?
Jess Kelley (06:38):
Yeah.
Dehydration by the way, happensreally easily.
So even a 2% loss can result inimpairment.
And so, what can happen as faras short term?
Fatigue is one of the mostcommon.
Fatigue is one.
Hunger.
The sensation for thirst andhunger are the same.
(07:03):
Um, we also see mood changeslike irritability, depression,
and also delirium.
So especially with our agingpopulation where we're seeing a
lot of these acute, uh,dementia, delirium.
Those are, can be symptoms ofdehydration.
(07:25):
And so it's very, very importantto tune into anytime someone's
exhibiting any type of, youknow, cognitive impairment.
Headaches are huge.
Headaches are one of thebiggest, you know, gosh, or
constipation.
Um.
Those are gonna be some of the,the first signs that we see and,
(07:49):
and that can happen in as quickas, you know, 24 hours.
We can only survive withoutwater for three days.
So dehydration happens veryquickly.
It happens from just sleeping atnight.
As we respirate, we lose a poundof water almost a night, you
know, people.
Wow.
Yeah.
So it doesn't really take muchfor this to happen and happen
(08:11):
quickly.
So when we see headaches, whenwe see constipation, when we see
delirium, confusion, um,agitation, and just overall
fatigue, those are, that's whatyou're gonna see first When it
comes to sort of long-termdehydration, long-term sort of
chronic dehydration, um, it'sbeen linked to several different
(08:36):
metabolic conditions because ourmitochondria actually uses the
hydrogen from water.
So remember that the chemicalcomposition of water is H2O, so
two hydrogen and one oxygen.
So, um, in order for ourmitochondria to produce energy
or ATP, it actually useshydrogen.
(08:58):
So in states of dehydration, um,you know, the hydrogen supply is
more limited, but there's alsonot enough water to sort of
transport, um, potentiallymitochondrial damaging toxins
away from the cell.
So, hydration and mitochondrialfunction are critically linked.
(09:18):
There was a great report thatjust came out co-authored by Dr.
Mercola and Dr.
Zach Bush about medicmitochondria and dehydration and
so these long-term metabolicdisorders, cancer.
Alzheimer's, diabetes, we shouldbe looking at hydration status.
(09:38):
So it is a big, big deal.
So
Ivelisse Page (09:42):
I would love that, link so that we can add
that in the show.
Jess Kelley (09:45):
Lemme send show notes.
Yeah.
Ivelisse Page (09:47):
And is there anything, is there any such
thing as too much water?
So my, my husband and some myboys are doing the 75-Day-Hard.
This is Jimmy's second timearound doing it.
And it was really good for beingfocused and really setting goals
but one of the five things thatthey have to do is that they
have to drink 120 ounces ofwater a day.
And I know that it's typical,you're supposed to drink half of
(10:10):
your body weight in water a day.
So is there something as toomuch water'cause that would be
way too much for me?
Jess Kelley (10:17):
Yes.
So definitely we see hypohydration that can happen in
athletes.
So what happens is, is that whenyou sweat during these intense
exercises, you're also losingelectrolytes.
So when you just replenish waterwithout electrolytes, especially
sodium, potassium, magnesium,all these electrolytes that get
(10:41):
excreted through sweat, thenpeople can have too much
hydration.
So not only is it important to,to replenish water, but to make
sure that in these athletic, youknow, high output, 75 mile
races, that they're reallygetting on board some good
electrolytes as well.
We like the LMNT brand.
(11:01):
I don't get any kickbacks fromthem, but it's nice'cause it's
not sugary tasting.
But I think electrolytes arereally important and just
imagine that the averageestimate is that you're gonna
burn around 32 ounces of waterduring intense exercise.
You know, every person'sdifferent, so, but they're gonna
be burning through a lot ofwater, so that, that's actually
(11:21):
a fairly conservative estimatefor that much of a exertion.
So, yeah, I wouldn't be worriedabout that at all.
Ivelisse Page (11:30):
Okay.
And I know, you know, you justmentioned the LMNT.
Yeah.
We don't get any kickbacks fromthem either.
But I was looking, you know, oneof the things, especially living
here in Colorado, the elevationand it's important that we get
even more so easily hydrated,uh,'cause of the dryness here.
Yeah.
And so I was trying to even findat Whole Foods a good
(11:50):
electrolyte that wasn't filledwith so much sugar.
And I was shocked to read allthe labels of so many
electrolytes that people areputting in that is more than a
can of soda.
So it was nice to find somethinglike the LMNT that does not.
Are there any others that youhave found that don't have the
sugar?
'Cause, you know, as cancerpatients, yeah.
Um, it's really important, youknow, to, for everyone to
(12:14):
minimize the amount of sugar intheir diet, right?
Uh, so you're trying to dosomething positive and you don't
want on the second hand to dosomething negative for yourself.
Jess Kelley (12:21):
Right.
Yeah, it is, it is tricky.
And you're right, a lot of thecommercial ones are kind of
junk.
So the other one that I like isTrace Minerals.
They have drops that aretasteless, you know, just a 10
20 drops in a glass of water,which I recommend people do on a
day-to-day basis.
And you know, the other reason Ilike this particular brand is
(12:41):
because it contains lithium.
So the more we've been lookinginto water and looking into some
of these mitochondrial metabolicdiseases, especially in, you
know, the mental health area.
So lithium is an essential traceelement and it's found or
supposed to be found in mostwater sources.
However, it's not, and therehave been several large
(13:05):
epidemiological studies thathave found a correlation between
the amount of lithium anddrinking water supply and
suicide in the generalpopulation.
Now there's actually a largepush to start adding lithium
into public water supply in thesame way that they added
fluoride, you know, years ago toprevent dental cavities.
(13:25):
So lithium is incrediblyimportant and it's really
missing from a lot of water.
You know, whether people get itfrom tap water or city water,
you know, city water or wellwater or bottled water or canned
water.
So that's definitely, that's myfirst choice is gonna be the
Trace Minerals drops'cause ofthe lithium content, uh, because
(13:49):
that's missing out of a lot of,most commercial ones don't have
the lithium, but that'scritically important.
Ivelisse Page (13:55):
Wow, I didn't know that.
That's amazing.
Now, I, I have never had, uh,issues getting an iv, you know,
put in.
Uh, but the last two times, thetechnician that comes to my
house to give me my nutritionalIVs, um, he, my veins were
failing and I guess it was justtoo many blood draws that I had
before my surgery.
Um, and they are just kind ofsaying, okay, enough.
(14:18):
But the person who does themtold me that if I drink several
ounces of water with some seasalt or electrolytes the night
before that it would help themto be able to put in IVs easier.
Um, I know that that's somethingsuper important for patients as
they're getting blood draws orgoing in for procedures and
things.
Is that something that you havefound with the clients you work
(14:39):
with that is helpful?
Jess Kelley (14:41):
Absolutely.
So, yeah, so when you thinkabout dehydration, because it,
it, it helps to maintain the,your vascular integrity, right?
So humans are between, you know,adults or anywhere between 65
and 75% water.
So even a little bit ofdehydration is gonna make those
(15:01):
veins a little more concave,right?
So it is very important,especially for the folks that
are getting lots of IVs done, tomake sure that they're really
well hydrated, going into thosedraws to prevent multiple pokes
and uh, yeah.
Too much of the poking.
Ivelisse Page (15:21):
Yes, yes.
Okay.
Well good.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That was a tip that I had neverheard, and it's a great tip and
sure.
I did that the next time and Ihad no issues.
Oh, so, uh, wanted to ask youabout that on our call.
Absolutely.
On our podcast today.
Yeah.
So I also.
Jess Kelley (15:35):
Go ahead.
Well, the same goes too, ifyou're getting any other type of
IV solution coming into yourbody.
So chemotherapy, um, you know,for example, I always say that
the solution to pollution'sdilution, you're gonna get that
moving around your body andfiltered out much more
efficiently and effectively ifyou go into those in a hydrated
(15:57):
state.
So really important for peoplewho are in treatment to think
about every time they're goingin, to make sure that they are
optimally hydrated because it'sso easy for our chronically ill
folks to get dehydrated.
They're nauseous, they don'twanna drink water, maybe.
So I have people just make a, abig thing of ginger tea ahead of
(16:19):
time and just add some of thatinto your water.
Uh, you know, it's just any waythat you can get it in, it's
gonna be really helpful.
But yeah, in, in addition togetting IVs, but any type of
intravenous treatment, it willbe helpful.
Ivelisse Page (16:34):
Okay.
Well, thank you.
And I remember you telling uslast time that there was a
website that we can check thequality of the water in our
area.
What, what is that website forpeople to check?
Yes.
To determine what filter is bestfor their area.
Jess Kelley (16:47):
Yeah, so the Environmental Working Group,
they put out this incrediblyvast database where you can plug
in your zip code and it willgive you a readout of all of the
components found in your publicsupply of drinking water.
And it is fascinating how manythings are in there that are
(17:11):
above recommended amounts.
Um, but then it also reallyhelps for people to figure out
what kind of filter system theyshould get.
So if they are really high inwhatever, I, for example, I'm on
a well.
So, but in my area it's veryhigh in iron and so I have to
have a, a specific iron filterfor that.
(17:35):
Um, but yeah, these publicwater, uh, public water systems
are really quite, can be reallyquite toxic, so it's worth
people plugging it in.
Go to the Environmental WorkingGroup water site and uh, and
just seeing what's going on intheir individual area,
especially if they live in anagricultural area because a lot
(17:59):
of the fertilizer, pesticides,those type of things are going
to infiltrate into thegroundwater system.
And so, um, it's really, I mean,everyone should check, but I
just think it's really importantto take a peek there.
So.
Yeah.
Ivelisse Page (18:16):
Yes.
Yeah.
I have the Aqua Sana whole homewater filter.
Great.
'Cause it's not only the waterthat we're drinking, but it's
what we're showering with, whatwe're watering our plants, our
gardens with and Right.
So many aspects, you know, that,that affects our health.
Jess Kelley (18:29):
Right.
And.
Ivelisse Page (18:30):
At the B Believe Big office, we have the Berkey
'cause we're not gonna install asystem in that, in a rental
place.
But, um, but what can you tellus about reverse osmosis
systems?
I've heard, you know, manypeople talk about that.
Jess Kelley (18:45):
Those are great.
What a good baseline system isto do a reverse osmosis.
It really does get a lot of theheavy metals and a lot of these
other things.
So that's, that's typically whatwe recommend.
If you're gonna be looking intoa filtration system, is gonna be
like a whole house, reverseosmosis.
Um, and then, and then, youknow, bringing on board some of
(19:06):
your mineral drops to make surethat you're re mineral
mineralizing.
Mineralizing.
That's today's tongue twister.
Yes.
Um, the water after you filterit out.
But, um, yeah, it is, uh, ingeneral the reverse osmosis
system is wonderful.
And as you mentioned, it's notjust what you're drinking, but
(19:26):
we really, you know, this otherbenefit to water is using it
externally.
So hydrotherapy.
So if you're taking a shower,and this is, people can do this
for free at home.
So you're standing in yourshower and you're alternating
between hot and cold, and you'reactivating your immune system
when you're doing that.
(19:47):
You know, research has shownthat your skin absorbs a lot of
water and obviously things thatare applied to it.
So, um, especially, you know, ifyou're taking a therapeutic
bath, which we recommend, Epsomsalt baths, chamomile baths, all
those different things, makingsure that the water that you are
on the outside because it willtransdermally absorb.
(20:08):
So making sure that you have awhole house system is really
important.
Ivelisse Page (20:12):
Yeah.
How, how long do you recommendthe cold and then the hot
switching when you're in theshower?
Jess Kelley (20:17):
Ooh, as long as you can take it, I don't know, 30
seconds.
It, once you start starting outis hard, but the more you
practice, you can increaseduration.
So, if people start out cold,cold, cold, and they're like, do
it for five seconds, and they goback to warm, and then you stay
warm for, you know, 20 secondsand then cold, cold, cold.
It's wonderful.
(20:38):
Do that a few times.
It really makes a bigdifference.
People who are having problemssleeping.
And this goes back to these oldnight cures, these water cures
that originated outta Germanyhundreds of years ago.
Cold water applied below theknee before bed can really
assist with lowering bloodpressure, getting people to
(21:01):
de-stress, helping to reduce hotflashes before bed.
So, um, it's really not youknow, just cold water therapy
below the knee before bed canhave massive therapeutic
benefits.
Wow.
So, yeah.
Ivelisse Page (21:15):
Wow.
I didn't know that.
I had thought you had to be likeunder, like from your neck down
No.
In order to gain the benefits.
Jess Kelley (21:21):
No, no.
There's a lot to be said.
So think about that cold kind ofdrawing out the bottom of you.
So, um, you don't have to befully immersed.
In fact, there's a lot of, um,therapeutic spas in throughout
Germany and, and other placesthat have, are specific to body
parts.
So below the knee or just thechest or, um, you know, heads.
(21:43):
So, yeah.
Ivelisse Page (21:44):
Fantastic.
Well that's good for me'causeJimmy does the cold plunges all
the time.
Yeah.
And loves'em.
But I'm like, the cold is justsomething that I have to really
work on getting into.
But I do do that once I leavethe sauna, I kind of go in and
get, take a cold or shower.
Yeah.
Um, but I like the below theknee I can, I can handle that.
Yeah.
So that, that's a good, that's agood tip for me too.
(22:06):
Yeah.
So.
What about alkaline watersystems that increase the pH?
I've seen those around a lot ofhealth bloggers talking about
that.
Or the ionized hydrogen, watersystems.
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(23:51):
care together.
Jess Kelley (23:53):
There are so many different types of water.
Ivelisse Page (23:57):
Yes.
That's why I wanted to ask you.
Jess Kelley (23:58):
I know.
It's been amazing, you know, uh,deuterium, depleted water,
structured water, hydrogen wa Imean, so many different things.
And I think, you know, it, itbecomes, uh, an economic
conversation for most people,and I feel like, you know, we're
so much of this health isunattainable to lower income
(24:21):
folks because they're like, oh,really, a$500 water system?
Gimme a break.
It's a little much.
Now this whole concept aroundalkalinity is, um.
Tumors create their ownmicroenvironment.
So whatever water you drink isnot going to, uh, change the
microenvironment, the pH of thattumor.
(24:42):
You have different phsthroughout your whole body, so
the pH in your stomach is gonnabe really acidic in order to
break breakdown protein.
It's gonna be a very differentacidity in your kidneys and your
urethras.
You're gonna have different pHand you're designed to have
different pH throughout yourwhole body.
And so thinking that, uh, a pHof a water is going to kind of
(25:08):
create a big impact, not great.
So what I don't like aboutalkaline water is that we're
removing a lot of thoseessential minerals.
And minerals are really, they'rerequired, they're essential to
the body.
Whereas our pH is going tofluctuate and it should
metabolically, but what we needto have is those minerals.
(25:29):
So, um, alkaline water, no, Idon't, we need water kind of in
its purest form, which will haveall of those essential and trace
minerals.
Um, yeah, so I think really whatwe're focusing on the most, I
mean, of course adding morehydrogen.
Great, because as I talkedabout, our mitochondria use
(25:51):
hydrogen in order to produceATP, which is important, and
dehydration can contribute tomitochondrial sluggishness.
But as a whole, I think that ifpeople are getting a pretty good
filter system, we're moreconcerned about the toxins that
are found in water.
It's also found that three infive people are getting their
(26:12):
water from plastic water bottlesor canned water bottles.
So there's this huge seltzerwater trend because, you know,
we hear clinically is people arelike, I don't like the taste of
water.
It's boring.
I have a dime for that one.
But it's true.
So people are getting these zerocalorie, whatever, uh, cans of
(26:32):
water that have eitherartificial or natural flavors.
And I think we're making it too,there's, there's a tendency in
nutrition to make things alittle too complicated.
So if we can just get back tonot drinking out of plastic
because it's got BPA and otherendocrine disrupting chemicals,
not drinking out of cans becausecans are going to also have
(26:54):
leach different types ofchemicals, but also some of
these na quote unquote naturalflavors.
That could be anything.
It's not tightly regulated andartificial flavors and some of
these other artificialsweeteners and things like that.
So I think it's more if you'regetting a good water out of the
tap and you're running itthrough a nice filter system and
(27:15):
then you do some testing on itto make sure there's no residual
type of, you know, there's a lotof public water supplies that
will offer you a home test kitfor 35 bucks.
So just knowing what's in yourown water system I think is
really helpful.
Um, in general, I don'trecommend really high end or
expensive filtration systems orwater additions.
(27:37):
I think if people really want toexplore deuterium depleted water
or uh, hydrogen additions, theycertainly can, but it's not sort
of frontline where we go withwater.
Ivelisse Page (27:48):
Yes.
You just mentioned somethingthat just kind of struck me
'cause it's one of my favoritethings and it's sparkling water.
I just love mineral water and sois mineral water, not part of
the daily water intake that weshould be drinking each day,
even if it's in a glass, likethe Glass Pellegrino, or
there's, uh, the one that I getat Whole Foods, it's in a glass
(28:09):
bottle.
It starts with a GI can'tremember the name right now.
I'm not talking about like therec LaCroixs or the Waterloos
and things like that, thatyou're talking, that are in a
can.
So what are your thoughts on thedifferent sparkling waters that
everyone so loves?
Jess Kelley (28:24):
Well, um, when we carbonate water, we're adding a
carbon molecule, so, or carbonmolecules.
So that's gonna change thechemical structure of water.
It is not as hydrating asstraight up water.
So it's nice to have a balanceof flat water and water with
some carbonation.
If you're just strictly doingcarbonation, you might find, you
(28:47):
know, some people get like mildheadaches more frequently than
they should, even though they'redrinking enough water.
Um, we have to just kind of keepan eye out for what's going on
with that added carbon.
Carbon molecule addition to thebubbly waters.
So there's, you know, for themost part, a sparkling mineral
water that has nothing added,aside from just sparkling
(29:09):
mineral water in a glass.
Fantastic.
I drink those all the time andthere are a lot of great brands
of canned, you know, sparklingwaters that don't have natural
or artificial flavors.
They're out there too, but it isworth reading the label on your
waters.
Um, you know, in thinking aboutwhat it comes from, and I
definitely recommend that peopledo have a balance, you know,
(29:31):
especially first thing in themorning to have flat water with
some minerals in it, becausewe're typically most dehydrated
when we wake up in the morningbecause we've been respirating
all night.
So it's a really nice time tohave, you know, a little warm
water with perhaps a littlelemon juice or a little addition
of a therapeutic tea is a greattime to add that into your flat
(29:52):
water.
If you don't like the taste ofwater, that's a great place.
You know, everyone's like, drinkyour five cups of green tea a
day, and people are like, nothappening.
So you make a big container ofgreen tea, keep it in the fridge
and you add a little green teainto your water in the morning
to give it a taste.
I love Jasmine green tea.
It's just a really lovely tasteand so trying to mix up, if you
(30:14):
love mineral sparkling water, Ithink it's important to, to
have, uh, flat water as well.
Ivelisse Page (30:19):
Okay.
Well that, that's, that's reallygood confirmation there.
Yeah.
I know that our time is alreadyquickly coming to end.
I can't believe how fast it hasgone, but, um, I, I wanted to
ask you, given your expertise inindividualized nutrition plans,
you know that you teach thosewho go through your program, how
do you tailor hydrationrecommendations for different
(30:41):
needs, such as during cancertreatment versus recovery versus
long-term health maintenance?
Jess Kelley (30:47):
Sure.
You know, it really, obobviously depends on the person
and it depends on what they'regoing through.
There's some really inexpensiveat home urine strips that you
can get and some cups that youcan get out.
I keep'em in my bathroom all thetime.
Anyone who comes over, I'm like,you wanna pee in a cup for me?
So basically you could just do alittle dipstick and a test
(31:08):
specific gravity, which is ahydration marker so people can
get a sense of if they're reallydehydrated or not.
If people don't wanna do that athome, as a general guideline, we
try to get people to do, youknow, for most adults it's about
80 ounces of water a day, sotrying to make sure that that's
happening.
So, you know, people walkthrough the door and they have
this complex list ofsupplements.
(31:29):
They have all these questions,and you can spend 35 minutes as
we just did, just talking aboutwater.
The water that makes theircoffee, the water that makes
their tea, the water that makestheir, you know, water is the
master nutrient.
So making sure that people arereally hydrated is gonna be
super important.
Anything that's gonna dehydratethese folks, especially if
(31:50):
they're having side effects fromtreatments where they may have
diarrhea or vomiting or, a lotof people end up with some
dysphagia where they're havingtrouble swallowing and they're
getting dehydrated.
Like I said, dehydration canhappen rapidly within a day or
two.
So we're keeping a very closeeye on those people.
And if we can get them to dothese little at-home hydration
(32:11):
tests, that's really helpful toget a look.
And then even, you know, if wecan get people to get IV fluid
replacement with some of theseelectrolytes, it's really
helpful too.
That's why they do it in thehospital.
We encourage our practitionersto take a lot of time with
their, with their clients, withtheir patients, to talk to them
deeply about their water, howmuch, what source, you know, all
(32:34):
that.
It's really criticallyimportant.
Ivelisse Page (32:36):
Wow.
Yeah.
That's great.
And can you send us the link toYeah, the hydration little
checks.
I think I'm gonna buy some justto curiosity.
Oh yeah,
Jess Kelley (32:44):
yeah.
You would love that.
Oh yeah.
No, it's so, and it tests pH andit tests ketones and it te does
some other, um, things.
I think it's like 25 bucks onAmazon.
So I'll send you those links inthese little pee cups that I get
at home and they're nice tohave.
It's a real.
It's a conversation starteraround the holidays.
Ivelisse Page (32:58):
Yeah.
Hey,
Jess Kelley (32:59):
now
Ivelisse Page (32:59):
the holidays are coming for people.
Love that.
Hey, come, come over here.
I gotta check something on you.
And Jess, thanks so much forjoining with us again today.
Uh, we'll look forward totalking to you about fasting or
another one of your amazing,knowledgeable topics that you
have and, uh, really greatlyappreciate your time.
Jess Kelley (33:18):
Thank you Ivelisse, and thanks for all the great
work you guys do at Believe Big.
Ivelisse Page (33:29):
If you enjoyed this episode and you'd like to
help support our podcast, pleasesubscribe and share it with
others.
Be sure to visit BelieveBig.orgto access the show notes and
discover our bonus content.
Thanks again and keep BelievingBig!
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