by Fern Shaw | Oct 11, 2019 | aquaid, Water Coolers
There’s no disputing that we Britons don’t drink enough water. According to various surveys and research, just 1 in 10 of us consumes enough water to qualify for being adequately hydrated.
This is a cause for concern, as maintaining even the minimum levels of hydration is vital to our ability to function, albeit not even close to optimal levels.
Just as important, seeing as 10 October is #WorldMentalHealthDay, our brain needs water most of all. Our brains are our command centres: how we think, act, take action or perform any task all stems from the signals we receive from our brain.
That’s why maintaining a decent level of hydration is crucial.
How dehydration affects the brain
While mild dehydration is loss of 1.5 percent of a body’s normal water volume, a level of hydration just one percent below optimal can affect our cognitive ability, affect our moods and make it more difficult to concentrate.
It alters how we think and feel by slowing circulation. This lowers blood flow, which means less oxygen travelling to all parts of the body, including the brain.
As dehydration worsens, cognitive function is further impaired, leading to delirium. Severe dehydration can cause unconsciousness and even coma.
How good hydration helps
Drinking enough water keeps our brain from having to struggle against the effects of dehydration, allowing us to think more clearly, giving us the ability to function better overall.
Drinking water regularly throughout the day is an easy, effective step to take in our efforts to be as mentally healthy as possible, bearing in mind that staying hydrated by drinking enough water is but one aspect of good physical, emotional, and mental health.
Here at AquAid Water Coolers, we take hydration seriously. At every turn, and every season, we encourage Britons to drink water more. If you would like to ensure that you have access to refreshing drinking water wherever you are in the UK, contact us at AquAid – with over 20 years’ experience in the provision of high quality water dispensers, we are well equipped with being able to provide you with the perfect drinking water solution.
by Fern Shaw | Aug 12, 2019 | water cooler, Water Coolers
At AquAid Water Coolers we believe in altruism, which is one of the reasons why we established the Africa Trust – a charity that helps bring safe and clean drinking water to many impoverished communities in Africa. And because we believe in helping others, we always have immense respect for other organisations that do the same.
Help may take different shapes and forms, and one such organisation is Action for Happiness – a charity that aims to increase the happiness in the world by bringing together like-minded people from all walks of life and supporting them to take practical action to build a happier society.
While everyone’s path to happiness may be different, Action for Happiness lists 10 Keys to Happier Living, which research suggests consistently tends to have a positive impact on people’s happiness and well-being.
- Giving – do things for others
- Relating – connect with people
- Exercising – take care of your body
- Awareness – live life mindfully
- Trying out – keep learning new things
- Direction – have goals to look forward to
- Resilience – find ways to bounce back
- Emotions – look for what’s good
- Acceptance – be comfortable with who you are
- Meaning – be part of something bigger
Action for Happiness also dedicates an action and theme to each month, and this month it’s Altruistic August and here are a few lovely suggestions taken from their calendar:
- Leave a positive note for someone else to find
- Show support for a cause that doesn’t affect you directly
- When you buy one and get one free – give the other extra item away
- Look for the good in everyone you meet today
You can find a copy of it here – help someone in need and have a great August everyone!
by Fern Shaw | Aug 6, 2019 | aquaid, Water Coolers
AquAid definitely offer more than industry standards when it comes to the supplier / customer relationship.
Of course we pride ourselves on the ever important customer service while supplying top quality, highly effective and user friendly range of water coolers, boilers and water fountains – all with a guaranteed next day delivery service.
The ‘more’ is something of which we’re especially proud: the knowledge that an integral part of a successful business model is in giving back and since AquAid’s inception, something we’ve practised. How? By ensuring that a portion of our water cooler sales is donated to sustainable charities.
One of the most recent examples of how this is achieved was when we invited Swiis International to participate in building an Elephant Pump in Africa on their behalf.
“Here at Swiis International (and our sister companies; Swiis Foster Care, Swiis Foster Care Scotland and Swiis Health and Social Care), we are aware that keeping our staff members hydrated will aid them to perform at their very best throughout the working day. As a result, we decided to invest in water coolers from AquAid.
Our partnership with AquAid has also given our company the opportunity to help those less fortunate than ourselves. With each purchase an automatic donation is made to the Africa Trust and these funds are used to build ‘Elephant Pumps’ – a modified version of an age old Chinese rope pulley system. One such pump is currently being installed in Africa on our behalf and it will be a much needed source of clean and fresh drinking water for many.
Our organisation’s name will be proudly displayed on the well and we look forward to adding both photos and feedback from the villagers to our website in the near future.
To date, AquAid have built over 8,000 such Elephant Pumps across parts of Zimbabwe, Malawi and Liberia; and have donated in excess of £15 million to charity.”
We’re delighted that Swiis International agreed to take part in this initiative and we look forward to being able to present a certificate and photo of their well in honour of their participation in the near future.
by Fern Shaw | Jul 23, 2019 | bottle fed water coolers, Water Coolers
Do you know how to keep yourself properly hydrated during a heatwave? With the temperatures set to soar this week, here at AquAid Water Coolers we have compiled a checklist to help you keep cool and hydrated wherever you are:
In the workplace:
- Stay hydrated! Set an alarm clock on your pc, laptop or mobile to make sure that you visit the water cooler as often as needs be to replenish your drinking water.
- Chill your wrists: Run cold water over your wrists for 20 to 30 seconds every hour. Try not to do this using the cool water from the water cooler – it’s messy and I doubt the water cooler station is meant to be used as a private bathing area. Rather use the taps in the bathroom.
- Drink cool (but not icy cold) liquids to help lower your body temperature. The water cooler station is perfect for this.
- Turn off electronics: If they’re not being used, unplug electronic devices to keep them from generating unnecessary heat.
At home:
- Chill your wrists: Run cold water over your wrists for 30 seconds or so every hour:
- Stay hydrated! Kids may not feel thirsty, but it’s essential to stay hydrated, so make sure young ones are getting lots of water. If you’re planning to leave the house, freeze your reusable water bottles and take them with you.
- Drink cool (but not icy cold) liquids to help lower your body temperature.
- Try to keep water refrigerated prior to drinking, if possible.
- Frozen flannel: Freeze a flannel and then plop it on the back of your and your family’s necks – instant refresher.
- Turn off electronics: If they’re not being used, unplug electronic devices to keep them from generating unnecessary heat.
- Don’t cook: Feed your family fresh foods such as salads and fruit. Not only will this cool the body’s core, it’ll also keep cooking-related heat from filling up the house.
- Postpone laundry: Plan to do heat-generating activities after the sun goes down. For example, do your laundry at night.
All around:
- Avoid the heat: stay out of the sun and if possible don’t go out between 11h00 and 16h00 (the hottest part of the day) if you’re vulnerable to the effects of heat.
- Have cool baths or showers, and splash yourself with cool water.
- Drink cold drinks regularly, such as water and fruit juice. Avoid tea, coffee and alcohol.
- Stay tuned to the weather forecast on the radio or TV, or at the Met Office website.
- Plan ahead to make sure you have enough supplies, such as food, water and any medications you need.
- Wear loose, cool clothing and a hat if you go outdoors.
- Check up on friends, relatives and neighbours who may be less able to look after themselves.
- People who have epilepsy or heart, kidney, or liver disease; are on fluid-restricted diets; or have a problem with fluid retention should consult a doctor before increasing liquid intake.
- If you’re sweating a lot, be quick to replace lost salts and minerals as well as water. Fruit juice or sports drinks with electrolytes are good choices, but do not take salt tablets unless directed to by your doctor. Taking calcium supplements, however, is a good idea.
- Drink cool (but not icy cold) liquids to help lower your body temperature. Try to keep water refrigerated prior to drinking, if possible.
It’s also good to bear in mind that wherever you require a temporary or permanent hydration solution in the UK, AquAid have a wide range of water coolers tailor-made to meet your requirements. We even offer a next day water delivery service for our Bottle-Fed Water Coolers.
Contact us today.
by Fern Shaw | Jul 16, 2019 | Africa Trust, water cooler, Water Coolers
Irrespective of whether or not you believe in climate change, there’s no denying that the stats resulting from the radically changing weather patterns year on year or the crucial drop in natural water supply globally speak volumes:
844 Million People – 1 in 10 – lack access to safe water.
200 Million Hours are spent every day collecting water.
2.3 Billion People – 1 in 3 – lack access to a toilet.
One third of the global population lives without access to a toilet.
The ramifications of these stats and the volume of people it affects can seem quite daunting in terms of how to address this global issue. There is good news though: there are multiple organisations around the world that continue, every day, to provide sustainable solutions to the lack of water as well as adequate sanitation to those in need.
Sustainability may seem like the buzz word of the millennium – bandied about without much meaning, but the truth of it is – sustainability is vital in the provision of water and sanitation to those for who access to water is an ongoing fight for actual survival.
Sustainable water projects are those that include both short term and long term solutions which pave the way forward by enabling a community to begin water related projects that may provide them with a capacity to earn an income or to trade their produce or services to others.
There’s much truth in the adage, ‘Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime’, but before we implement this philosophy, help is needed to provide water to communities that more often than not, do not have the most basic of infrastructures for a steady supply of water.
That’s why here at AquAid Water Coolers we have, since our humble beginnings more than two decades ago, partnered with charities that not only provide emergency relief but also sustainable solutions to poverty around the globe, as is the case with Christian Aid and in the case of the Africa Trust, throughout Africa.
To learn more about the work that these organisations carry out, visit us at our website and see how your water and water cooler purchases are making a visible positive difference to others. Alternatively, if you are not yet an AquAid customer, but would like to find out more about how your drinking water translates into sustainable clean water provision for people in need, please contact us: we’ll be delighted to assist.
