Got H20?

Got H20?

Water is an essential for all living things due to water's properties that aid living things in surviving. Life on Earth would not be possible without water. This is why we are so avid about finding a planet with water on it. The properties of water are the following: universal solvent, high specific heat, and adhesion & cohesion. These properties help organisms survive and thrive on the planet. Roughly 70% of Earth is covered by water and 95.6% of that water is held in oceans and therefore is saltwater. This poses a problem for humans who cannot drink this saltwater, however let's look into the way water affects the lives of all organisms with its properties.

Water is a universal solvent and a polar molecule, it works best as a solvent of polar substances. When iconic substances are dissolved in water, they split into negative and positive ions. An example that affects organisms is: sodium chloride being absorbed into the water in the oceans and thus created a habitat for saltwater dwelling organisms. Water has the ability of absorbing high temperatures of heat while maintaining it's temperature. This protects organisms that make the water their habitat and require a certain body temperature to survive. Adhesion and Cohesion give water the ability for its molecules to be attracted to other surfaces and also attracted to other water molecules, and this can be seen in water moving up the stem up a plant using cohesion and adhesion to allow the water to travel up through the plants root system throughout the upper parts of the plant.

A fairly recent study was done by the CDC (center for Disease Control) that dealt with Americans not drinking enough water. The study was headed by Dr. Alyson Goodman who said that the amount of water that a person should drink everyday is unclear due to the variance in need from one human to another, and continued to say "less that four eight-ounce cups of water a day usually falls short." Forty-three percent of adults drink less than four cups of water a day. That includes 36 percent who drink one to three cups, and 7 percent who drink none. The CDC's study concluded amount of water you need to drink depends on the individuals' health habits. People who drink less water are also likely to be the same people who eat less than a cup of fruit and vegetables a day. The most consumed beverage by Americans 19 and older was found to be soda, which was said to be able to hydrate these people, however its consistent consumption would add obscene amounts of sugar to the diet and eventually lead to a range of problems from cavities to obesity. In conclusion drinking water could lead to the practice of better health habits. 

Sources: 

• http://faculty.fmcc.suny.edu/mcdarby/majors101book/Chapter_03-Chemistry/03-Water_Properties.htm
• http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-06-05/health/ct-x-0605-drinking-water-20130605_1_dietary-guidelines-much-water-drinking-water
• http://www.rsc.org/Education/Teachers/Resources/cfb/water.htm