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A lot is said about the importance of water for our health. This issue has been thoroughly studied by many scientific groups and expert teams, and the advantages of drinking proper amounts of plain water on a daily basis are numerous. Our body needs water for normal function of all its organs and systems, that is why all of us should try to use sufficient amounts of water to hydrate our body. According to the latest findings, those who choose plain water instead of commercially produced fruit juices or sweet carbonated drinks can reduce diabetes risks. Since the findings were received after analyzing extensive data on over 80,000 women, it is reported that these findings work well for women, and the effects of using plant water instead of sugary drinks for men should be proven by additional studies.
A group of experts at the Harvard School of Public Health analyzed the data on 82,902 women collected for over 12 years. Mainly, the information was taken from questionnaires about lifestyle and nutrition habits which the participants were asked to fill up. Over the 12-year period of time, about 2,700 of the study participants developed diabetes giving grounds for the scientists thoroughly analyze the factors and habits that could have caused the condition. After preliminary processing the information, it became apparent that such factor as daily water consumption of the participants did not seem to be linked to increased or decreased diabetes risks. However, the importance of water was not underestimated by the researchers.
As further analysis has shown, the more important factor which could decrease diabetes risks in women was drinking plain water instead of commercially produced fruit juices and other kinds of sweet beverages. It was estimated that those of the participants who consumed various sugar-sweetened beverages on a daily basis were 10 per cent more likely to develop diabetes. At the same time, further estimations have demonstrated that replacing one cup of sugar-sweetened drinks with one cup of plain water could assist in lowering diabetes risks in women by seven or eight per cent. It means that instead of ten women of every 100, only 9 will have increased diabetes risks, which should be considered quite a good tendency anyways.
Dr. Frank B Hu, one of the study leaders and a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, has been studying diabetes related issues for many years. He underlined that the findings of the study can not help decrease diabetes risks drastically, since “…diabetes is so prevalent in our society, even seven or eight percent reduction in diabetes risk is quite substantial in terms of the population.” It is estimated that in today’s United States, 
over 12.5 million women (which is about 10 per cent of total female population of the country) suffer from diabetes mellitus. Still, not all of them are aware about the risks and unwanted effects linked to consumption of commercial fruit juices, seemingly ‘healthy’ products.
Finally, as it is suggested in the report published recently in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, choosing unsweetened tea or coffee can be another excellent solution and alternative to any kind of sugary drinks. According to the estimations of the experts, replacing 1 glass of sweetened fruit juice with a cup of unsweetened tea or coffee can lower diabetes risks even more, up to 12-17 per cent. Prof. Hu is concerned about the importance of explaining people the risks linked to commercially produced fruit juice consumption. “The reality is those juices contain the same amount of calories and sugar as soft drinks,” he underlined. Read more about the findings of Prof. Frank B Hu and his scientific group about diabetes risks and the importance of water in this article.
Author Info: Hi! My name is Carla and I am a 5th year medical student at HYMS. I am interested in alternative medicine and I have done months researching the topic of herbal medicine. Besides, I like interviewing people and learning more about their experiences with one or another type of herbal treatments. I am willing to contribute to this site with my knowledge, and I would be happy to help you out to the best of my ability with any specific questions or problems related to alternative medicine.
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