Customer Reviews

Your Body's Many Cries for Water: A Preventive and Self-Education Manual for Those Who Prefer to Adhere to the Logic of the Natural and the Simple in

5 star:		(104)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I have long suffered from borderline hypertension. After reading this book and following Dr. Batman's advice, my condition corrected itself within six weeks. The advice is simple: to drink one ounce of water for every two pounds of body weight plus one and one half additional ounces of water for every ounce of beverage I consume containing caffeine, carbonation or alcohol. Do this every day.

But more important than the relief of my condition, I began to notice a change of lifestyle. I drink much less coffee and less alcohol. I've practically eliminated carbonated beverages. And, I feel much better. I've also lost weight.

Although I've given you the bottom line, you should read the entire book to appreciate how it applies to specific conditions from which you and your loved ones may suffer. Dr. Batman addresses how water can help everything from Asthma to ulcers. You will be amazed.

The best part of this book is its plain spoken advocacy of common sense. The Author doesn't sell bottled water. He isn't promoting a spa. He doesn't conduct seminars. He is a man with a simple message. Your body needs water, drink it!

I love to read and read voraciously. This may prove to be the most important book I've ever read.

Buy it, read it and follow Dr. Batman's advice. You won't be sorry.

Without condescending to read it, I had pooh-poohed the idea of this book for years. "Who needs to be told to drink water?" I thought. "Everyone already knows that." Then one afternoon, by accident, I saw it on a reshelving cart at a bookstore, and flipped through it. My new reaction was, "Oh, my God!" There I stood, as a Ph.D. scientist, looking at the book I'd made fun of, and I felt like a fool as I read key sections in several chapters.

I bought two copies (one to underline, with marginal notes; the other to lend out), and read through it in one sitting, after which I looked up Dr. Batmanghelidj in Virginia and phoned him for an extended conversation. I found him very congenial, unpretentious and blazingly competent. Since that day several years ago I have recommended this book to hundreds of people, and I've provided free copies to many doctors, dentists and youth counselors.

Cocky, presumptuous health practitioners, even more arrogant than I had earlier been about this subject, find this book easy to dismiss if they haven't read it, and I identify with their foregone-conclusion mentality, having been there myself prior to understanding this book. To the rest of you, whether you believe you're knowledgeable about health issues or not, I can only plead with you to read this book and take it seriously. In my case, I had been repeatedly plagued by headaches and lower-back pain before reading it, but not once since applying its recommendations. The orthopedic section alone is worth the price of the book. If you know anyone with asthma, it would be tragic not to buy a copy of this for them.

In short, though I have read literally hundreds of books on health and nutrition, I consider this book to be, without doubt, one of the very few most important and immediately practical ever written.

As Reviewer: Michael Foudy (mlf2@erols.com) from Falls Church, VA noted Dr Batmanghelidj advise is very simple: "to drink one ounce of water for every two pounds of body weight plus one and one half additional ounces of water for every ounce of beverage I consume containing caffeine, carbonation or alcohol. Do this every day."

Being an educated, rational woman I am not prone to ideas that border to the skeptic on quackery. But this book is serious medical and science information and should be in every community library and every home library. It is that basic and that simple.

Add to the fact I had been diagnosed with Lupus and beginning stages of Fibromyalgia. Then when I sought information in order to make informed decisions on treatment and lifestyle changes all I got was either major pity party and victim mode information or it is mental and one just needs to learn to live with it. Well I refuse to allow anything to stop me from living a full and healthy life so I started to seriously look into lifestyle changes and came smack dab to this wonderful book.

Like way to many Americans I thought if the beverage was "wet" that it was akin to water. And yes I am embarrassed to admit that I have worked in third world countries re: Peace Corps and Doctors Without Borders and know firsthand that clean water projects are #1 as far as preventative health care goes. So this book basically spells this simple fact out. Our bodies need water and as Americans we have such easy access to water with filter systems if needed, and as such we are looking at one of the least perhaps the least expensive preventative as well as healing gift around.

And if you are a woman and have any type of menses pain before during or after, or have had bouts with skin flare ups and urinary track infections and yes yeast infections this book will be the best medicine you ever gave yourself. Not only do I have no signs of the Lupus or Fibromyalgia but since drinking even more water than Dr suggests (because I like water) my joint pain is no more, my skin is healthy,my hair is healthy and my insomnia is gone. And yes, because I drink more water my kidneys function better, thus the toxins are flushed out more and so I have been losing weight easier and faster. My muscle tone is better and the only thing I have had to do was shower twice a day since I sweat from my workouts and need to wash the toxins in my sweat away. And I often ask myself "why did it take me so long to discover such a simple secret to health?"

As a side note, stop and think about how often water is mentioned in history as a healing tool. One need not be religious to realize that water is a basic need in life. That our bodies being mostly water, are akin to a river that needs fresh water flowing thru it at all times.

My only question is this. What do you have to lose and what do you have to gain by trying his simple suggestion?

I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important the information in this book is to humanity. It is an unbelievable travesty to the world's life and health to not have this simple but lifesaving info made public. Countless millions of people are suffering and dying as a result of no one ever telling them the truth. Everyone is either a victim of a serious illness or will be at some time in their life, many of which can be cured or prevented if they could learn of the essential value of drinking enough water. I am so grateful that I found this book, as after only a few days of changing my water consumption habits, I feel a drastic improvement in agonizing back pain. It has been the most revealing health related book I ever read, and I have read many . After you read this book you will only regret that you did not know about this a long time ago. Giving it to a relative or friend who is suffering and taking dangerous medication would be the greatest favor you could do for them. Highest recommendation for better health and a pain free life.

I have a friend who drinks practically no water at all and eats very little if any fresh fruits and vegetables, yet she gives water to her dog and she waters her plants. She complains constantly about pain, and she's on about a half dozen medications. One day I asked her if she would ever consider stop feeding water to her dog. The obvious answer was "no." I was waiting for her to ask further questions, but alas, nothing. That's the problem with human nature. We just don't get it sometimes. If a plant dies without water or even too little water, why do human beings not consume adequate water? If you don't consume adequate water, you might want to tell your friends you're on the "slow suicide diet" because that's what insufficient water intake is.

As for the book, it was a little hard to read because it is technical and scientific. Much of the terminology was over my head, but a lot of the content was quite simple to understand in terms of how water affects food digestion, ulcers, our brain functions and so forth. Simply put, the author concludes that most disease and discomfort in the body is due to inadequate water intake. That's all. That sounds credible to me because I don't see any way the author could possibly make more money off his theories. He's not pushing food supplements or anything to sell. He's pushing water, and he even recommends tap water (no thanks).

When I first read the book, I immediately increased my water intake. I started drinking one to two glasses of water at least one-half hour before each meal to prepare my digestive system. Within a day or two I noticed an immediate change in my digestion. No more "brick" feeling in my stomach all afternoon while my food digested oh so slowly.

My only criticism of the book is that the author did not take into account that water can be ingested by eating fresh fruits and vegetables. He makes excellent points about how coffee, sodas and juices (canned) are not a substitute for water. There is no mention about fresh fruits and vegetables and the importance of consuming lots of these foods for their water content as well.

I highly commend the author for this book. The part about salt intake really surprised me. I have always heard that salt is "bad" for the body, yet the author says the exact opposite and explains it in convincing detail. All I can say is that I need to read and reread the book to remind myself to consume water regularly.

I'm giving this book five stars because it is worth it's weight in gold. It's mostly common sense mixed in with scientific and technical information which can be hard to follow at times unless you're into that stuff. I would be surprised if anyone read this book and was not convinced that drinking water was essential to health and well being.

This book is outstanding! Dr. Batmanghelidj clearly presents a paradigm shift in our understanding of health and disease. After reading Dr. Batmanghelidj's book, I'm sadly convinced that my mother, who died last May, actually died of chronic and progressive dehydration that was constantly missed by the health professionals who intitially treated her for rheumatoid arthritis, then high blood pressure. She eventually had quadruple heart bypass surgery and a mitral valve replacement, and then suffered progressively debilitating transient ischemal attacks (mini-strokes) as a result of her bypass which left her increasingly disoriented until she died.

To think all of her suffering could have been prevented had she simply increased her water (and salt) intake! Instead she was given increasingly dehydrating medications for her symptoms which actually made her situation worse!

Since increasing my own water intake over the past three weeks, the chronic sinusitis which I've had since childhood has cleared up significantly, I'm breathing more clearly, I'm off almost all coffee and diet Pepsi's, my knees hurt significantly less, and I'm sleeping a lot more deeply and restfully. And it didn't cost me a dime more than the price of the book! My wife is also feeling a lot better, and my in-laws are eager to read the book as well.

I encourage all of you to buy, read and then pass on this book to all of the people you care about.

Before reviewing the book, let me mention that I heard Dr. Batmanghelidj talk and later met him about ten years ago at a conference I attended. During the Iranian Revolution, he was imprisoned along with many members of the Shah's supporters. Because he was a physician, he was often told by the guards to treat the other prisoners. In doing this, he usually had no medicines or instruments. The prisoners often were suffering from stomach ulcers and were cut off from their normal medications. Often, all he could do was to get the patients to drink some water. To his own surprise, water drinking helped many feel better. After a time, it seemed like the effect was stronger than what a mere placebo could cause. After he was pardoned by the new regime, he voluntarily stayed in prison to begin to run experiments testing his informal observations. Since leaving Iran, he has done much research in reviewing the published literature and has conducted further experiments. This book is based on what he has learned since then.

I bought the book, and began drinking more water. I found that my weight dropped more than 20 pounds in about four months, I had more energy, and my allergies improved. I also found that I had less desire for caffeine and alcohol. My mood improved, as well.

Since then, I have given this book as a gift to dozens of people who described themselves as having the potentially water-related health problems described in this volume. Most of them have reported improvements. I have not had such a positive response from any other health book that I have shared with others.

The book's basic point is that our bodies are 75 percent water. Because we are so dependent on keeping this balance (especially in our brains), the body has many mechanisms to conserve water for its most essential uses. When we become too dehydrated for too long, these conservation systems can produce unpleasant and unhealthy symptoms of pain, high blood pressure, depression, and allergies. Most physicians will treat the symptom rather than looking for potential causes. In many cases, water will help. The book explains why for pain from dyspepsia, colitis, false appendicitis attacks, general abdominal pressure, rheumatoid arthritis, back and neck pressure, angina, and headaches. He also addresses water-related mechanisms for helping relieve stress, depression, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, excessive weight, asthma, allergies, and diabetes.

Although I am not a scientist or a physician, the arguments seemed solid enough to try more water. At the same time, I could see no harm from drinking more water. I believe I have been helped, especially by drinking more water before, during, and after long plane flights.

Dr. Batmanghelidj also includes his ideas about how AIDS could be related to body chemistry imbalances in the book. This section does not fit with the rest of the material or to drinking more water, and I did not know what to make of it.

The basic problem is that as we get older, we lose our sense of thirst. As a result, unless we pay attention to drinking more water, we won't drink enough.

If you are like me, you will find that you have to spread the water out over the day to get the right amount. I usually drink one eight-ounce serving at a time. I prefer bottled water, and often put fruit slices in it for variety. But when bottled water isn't available, I let tap water sit long enough for the chlorine to leave. I also choose clear soups, and vegetables and fruits with lots of water content when they are available. This reduces how much has to be drunk as water.

Many people who drink little water tell me that they do not have access to clean rest rooms during much of the day. For those individuals, learning to time water consumption is critical.

The book's main drawback is that it doesn't have the editorial simplification that we are accustomed to seeing in health books. As a result, you will probably find it rambling. I graded the book down one star for this quality.

After you finish having your first glass of water to help you start enjoying life more, I suggest that you think about whether or not you are getting enough sleep. Although most of us can get along with very little for a while, doing that too long simply produces stress and other debiliating side effects. I found that water drinking helped me sleep better, and enjoy feeling more rested in the morning. I hope you do too!

To your good health!

Let me begin by saying that as a disgnosed asthmatic since age 3, Dr. B's ideas have--amazingly!--been the *only ones to ever suggest that asthma can be cured.*

And while I can't say it is 100% gone, my asthma is SOOO much better than it was using white man's medicine--you know, inhalers, prenizone, shots, etc. 20 years of that left me wheezing all the time. 1 month of water took care of it by and large, with occassional recurrances.

I would love to be an out an out believer in water. Dr. B certainly promises a lot with this book. My hunch is that he right on with most of it. I FEEL so much better since I started drinking at least 80 oz. of water daily.

It's just so simple, like he says. I mean, like plants, humans need water. Without water, plants shrivel and dry and die--is that really much different than what happens to dehydrated people as they age?

But the books reads like a 12th grade science project. With the exception of the letters from doctors and patients, and his own research into peptic ulcers (which DO seem grounded in scientific inquiry), I don't have the feeling that the rest is on a solid scientific ground. Let me be clear about it--my own experiences and my intuition tells me that Dr. B. is correct and justified to proclaim water as miracle. But the book itself, and the style its presented in don't by themselves give that degree of credibilty.

And he really could use a good copy editor and some advice to substitute his greatly overused "paradigm" word for "approach", because there is nothing world-view or all-encompassing about water, as "paradigm" is defined (inaccurately--read Thomas Kuhn's original work and try to come up with that definition! Just try!) No, drinking and studying water and its effects are more about approach than "big meta-idea" of the new paradigm.

Dr. B. is to be commended for this work. It has helped me immeasurably. It's a good book, but it demends follow up, further documentation, which might include footnotes and endnotes published with the work for more clarification (an issue he was to work out with his publisher--negotiate, man!) and all in all needs a less dogma and more explanation.

But thank you, Dr. Batmanghelidj for this work. It is much needed. It is so good that we need more of it! Keep it coming!

I couldn't wait to get this book and read it after I learned about it. It is a WONDERFUL book. If I could afford it, I would buy this book for everyone I love. I wouldn't dream of lending it out, but it seems I am telling everyone I know about it, and making some people sit while I read to them. It is true, how we all seem to get on 'continual treatment meds', and we could get off a lot of them if we just drank the proper amounts of water. It has been a lifesaver for me already. The facts were right in front of me. We ARE starving ourselves of water. I have had this book for two weeks, and I already can feel the rewards of drinking the proper amounts of water. I have already eliminated taking my fluid pills and my high blood pressure pills. I feel that I haven't even reaped in the full benefits as yet. I can't thank Dr. Batman enough for publishing this book. If you are wondering if this book is worth the money, and can help you, the answer if YES!!!!

I think Mr. Urologist (I wont use Dr.) has no clue what he is talking about. I have no medical degree and can tell you that what he is saying is asinine. Water intoxication, in most cases, is found in triathletes, marathoners, and military. It only happens when they have drank EXCESSIVE (generally over 200 ounces) amounts in a small period of time. This caused their sodium and mineral balances to go awry and they got sick or died. If the Pee Doctor had actually read the book, he would see that Dr. Batman talks repeatedly about adding sea salt to your intake if you have concerns about water intoxication.

I have had the following benefits from increasing my water intake to half my body weight in ounces per day, plus an additional 1.5 ounces of water for every 1 ounce of caffeinated beverages. (for me this is 128 ounces of water a day, I weigh 220 and drink one 12-ounce soda a day) Again, follows is a list of the benefits I have had, if you don't believe me you are foolish. I have no reason to lie.

no depression
more energy
sleeping better
skin more elastic and generally healthier (I am getting compliments about my face)
increased sense of well-being or doing something positive for myself
full, clear urine
full, regular excrement
no back pain (lower)
reduced knee/joint pain
less pain in my damaged ulnar nerve
eat less
feel tired less
awareness of thirst has returned (I don't eat or do something else instead)
less heartburn

The absolute most positive and main effect is no depression. I am entirely astounded at the postive effect this has had on my life. I have gotten off meds and will never return, for now I know the true answer. Meds are good to get you through a bad spot, but they will not relieve your depression effectively over a long period of time. This doesn't even consider the horrible side effects.

It is so clear that this is the healthiest thing that you can ever do for yourself (a close #2 is regular cardiovascular and muscle-building exercise). I personally commit that you will have increased health and mentality if you drink the correct amount of water for yourself. Also, consult Dr. Weil regarding the power of your mind towards your health.

Peace and good hydration to you all.

Thanks Dr. Batman!!!!!! you are a life saver. I hope your message gets to more and more people. I am now having friends come back to me stating how they are noticing differences for themselves. No one really believes it until it happens to them, and when my friends saw the sincerity I had about my improvement they tried it themselves.

Thanks again. You have truly made the world a better place.