by Belinda Ollewagen | Feb 9, 2019 | water cooler
It’s cold and grey outside which is not always conducive to drinking water and staying properly hydrated, but it’s essential that we encourage our children to take frequent trips to the water cooler during their school day. We all want them to be happy and healthy, and ensuring that includes paying particular attention to their water intake throughout the year – even in the colder months.
Illness aside, while the daily intake may vary according to a child’s weight and activity levels, the recommended intake is between five and eight cups of water per day. As with adults, if children are not drinking enough during the day, it may lead to dehydration – the effects of which include muscle weakness, dry mouth, headaches and fatigue. But because these symptoms are harder to recognize in children, it’s essential to pre-empt the condition; and the best way to do that is to keep a water cooler close by and make drinking water part of their daily routine.
While milk and juice all count towards hydration, the healthiest option still remains water in its purest form. Teaching children to enjoy drinking water is a healthy habit that will stand them in good stead for the rest of their lives. Ways to encourage and embed the habit of drinking water is to offer it to them at regular intervals during the day: as a way to start their school day, get them to visit the water cooler en route to their desks – in addition to the physical health benefits, research also shows that being properly hydrated helps children concentrate better; similarly each time they have a snack or a meal, encourage them to top up their water bottle or glass; and at the end of the day too before they leave for home.
Teach them the importance of proper hydration and how it benefits their bodies, and remember also that children learn by example, so make sure they see you drinking from the water cooler throughout the day too – happy and healthy teachers make for happy and healthy children.
by Fern Shaw | Feb 7, 2019 | Water Coolers
Unless a coconut cracked you on the head while you were walking underneath a coconut tree and this caused memory loss for a period, I’m quite positive that you’re aware of how most of the world has become all things coconut. There are more coconut derivatives than one can, well…. hurl a coconut at … think coconut meat, oil and water as just a few examples of this rather glorious tropical fruit.
While we batten down the hatches this rather snowy winter we look to water rich food or beverages that are good for us and is a worthy addition to our regular habit of drinking water.
The emphasis on ‘regular’ is important as studies show that when it’s colder we are less inclined to display signs of thirst despite the fact that dehydration can be just as prevalent in winter as it is in summer.
We took to Google to establish the nutritional properties of coconut water and were quite surprised at the results:
The nutritional breakdown for one cup of unsweetened coconut water is:
- Kilojoules: 184
- Fat: 0 g
- Protein: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrate: 10.4 g
- Sugar: 9.6 g
Some points in coconut water’s favour: It has some important nutrients like potassium (404 mg per cup, almost as much as what you’ll find in a banana), vitamin C (24 mg, around 30 percent of your recommended daily value), and magnesium (15 mg, roughly 5 percent of your daily recommended intake).
The downside: that sugar content. Even though this is unsweetened water, and these are natural sugars, 9.6 grams is over a third of the recommended daily maximum amount of sugar.
Whilst coconut meat also provides a wide range of nutrients, it has a calorie count of 354 per 100g and sugar 6g.
Conclusion: While there are definite nutritional and dietary advantages to eating coconut (put that Bounty Bar down!) and quaffing coconut water, drinking water is still the simplest and most direct route to maintaining good hydration. Speak to us at AquAid – we’ll be happy to help facilitate this through the provision of a wide range of high quality water coolers and dispensers. Sadly, we don’t currently offer coconut tree shaped water coolers – we’ll need to leave achieving that tropical island feel up to you.
by Belinda Ollewagen | Feb 6, 2019 | instant tap, Water Boilers, water cooler
In less than two weeks winter will officially begin in the UK and while reclining in a warm sunny garden, cold drink in hand, might now be a distant memory, what we shouldn’t change is the drink in hand bit. The weather might have changed, but our basic bodily...
by Fern Shaw | Jan 30, 2019 | water cooler, Water Coolers
We’re not referring to being in hot water, mind, rather we’re referring to how drinking hot water (and most derivatives thereof) in cold weather boosts our sense of well-being, makes us happy and unbelievably is good for our health too.
Mind how you go. As with anything that you ingest or consume that purports to be healthy, there’s usually a proviso. Of course there is. That’s why we’re not suggesting that you can drink as many of those marshmallow topped, cream laden hot chocolates as you like and still be in the peak of health, but we are stating that by drinking hot water drinks (not just hot water) you will achieve more than just one goal – you’ll warm yourself up, increasing your body temperature; you’ll feel comforted which increases your sense of well-being and if you’re drinking the right hot drinks, you’ll keep yourself hydrated, which means you’re maintaining your good health.
Don’t be fooled. Unless you were hibernating for the last few decades, you should no doubt be aware (by now) that sugar-free doesn’t equal better health. In fact, the ‘cheat sweeteners’ can be as bad for your waistline if not worse than could good old granulated sugar. If it tastes oddly synthetic, chances are it usually is.
What’s left, then? Quite a bit actually. Here are a few ideas to keep your precious little self hydrated, your tummy warm; and you fighting fit this winter:
- Install either a hot and cold water cooler or a hot water boiler at your premises. Visit it, often.
- Once you’ve installed your hot water maker, speak to those around you – ask them what hot water drinks they enjoy which don’t pack on the pounds.
- Go exploring. Virtually of course. As an example, you’ll find quite a few hot water drinks tips at the AquAid Water Coolers blog There’s plenty to choose from which will hopefully to inspire your hot water drinks journey.
However you choose to warm up this winter, we wish you happy hydration health.
by Fern Shaw | Jan 28, 2019 | instant tap, Water Boilers, Water Coolers
Sneaky because maintaining good hydration habits in winter can be just that: studies show that we can be up to 40% less thirsty in winter.
Dehydration is less noticeable in winter: During the summer in the UK, it’s far easier to equate how thirsty we are with how dehydrated we may be. Hot weather tends to make us sweat more, making dehydration much more noticeable. However, in winter, thirst isn’t as immediately apparent and perspiration turns to water vapour very quickly. As an example, when you step outside from a warm environment into a cold one and you can see your breath – that’s water vapour, which means you’re dehydrating.
Staying hydrated in winter helps us stay warm: Our bodies use water to help maintain our core body temperature. Dehydration can cause our core body temperatures can drop. Therefore the benefits of staying hydrated in winter are twofold: we stay hydrated and we keep warm when it’s cold outside.
… And gives your immune system a welcome boost: Our instinct in winter is to hibernate, especially indoors. Modern life, however, makes this untenable: we’re in and out of doors on a daily basis and the radical changes in temperature can easily and negatively affect our immune system as our systems fight to bring our body to the right temperature. That’s why it’s important to make sure we don’t decrease our water intake during winter. A good hydration habit is one of the simplest and best ways to keep the immune system boosted and ready to battle common winter illnesses like colds and flu. Whether you’re at home or at work, installing a water cooler will help you to easily keep up your water consumption, with refreshing drinking water available at the touch of a button.
Weight maintenance and loss: The cold weather can often lead us to exercise less and eat more. Weight gain because of this is often further exacerbated by not staying hydrated through winter. Maintaining hydration enables our bodies to be more efficient at breaking down fats and converting them to energy.
A few tips to maintain proper hydration during winter:
- Keep water in your line of sight – keep a water bottle on your desk or put a glass next to the kitchen sink to remind you keep drinking. Remember too, AquAid have a range of desktop and counter top water coolers making them the best reminder there is.
- Set yourself a reminder – An alert on your phone can remind yourself to top up your water bottle.
- Eat water rich foods – soups, salads or fruit as mentioned in our series on water rich fruit.
- Plump up your plain H2O – Adding a slice or wedge of lemon, lime or even cucumber gives your water an extra refreshing burst of flavour.
At AquAid Water Coolers, we provide a wide range of water dispensers to a broad and diverse set of customers from small, medium and large businesses through to medical facilities, universities, colleges and schools.
With more than 20 years’ experience in the provision of the right water coolers, water boilers, Instant Taps and water fountains to more than 33,000 customers, you can be assured that we will have the right water cooler to help keep you properly hydrated, whatever the time of year. Speak to us, we’ll be happy to help.
