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The two most important components of any preparedness program are food and water.
The following are facts about the importance of fresh drinking water:
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- A healthy adult can live for two weeks, possibly as long as four weeks without food.
- A healthy adult can only live three to four days without drinking water.
- The amount of people requiring fresh water on this planet is growing daily.
- Fresh water is a diminishing resource; countries continue to pollute their water supplies.
- Food can be treated to last for 10-12 years with the proper storage.
- Until recently, water could only last a few months in storage.
- An average adult loses 2-3 quarts of water each day through sweat, urination and defecation. Your body will lose even more in case of excess heat or cold exposure, intense activity, high altitude or illness.
- The average adult drinks approximately one (1) quart of water per day in the form of water, tea, coffee, juices or soft drinks. Another one (1) quart is consumed in foods, fruits, vegetables and other beverages that are more than 80% water. Another 1 1/2 cups of additional water is obtained as a by-product of metabolism.
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- The human body is 60-65% fluid; Blood plasma is 92% water, muscle mass is 80% water, and the remainder of the body is 50% water.
- A loss of more than 15% of the body's fluids may result in the body becoming comatose, leading eventually to death.
- Fresh water, available for use by humans, makes up less than 3% of the earth's total water volume.
- More than 80% of the earth's fresh water supply is in the form of glacial ice and is unavailable for our use.
- Approximately 12% of the earth's fresh water supply is underground.
- Only 5% of the earth's fresh water supply is present as surface water in the form of takes, ponds, rivers ant streams.
- Water is the cheapest preparedness item to acquire and the easiest to store. It is also the most overlooked item when preparing for an emergency.
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- In case of a natural disaster; hurricane, earthquake, flood, etc., the water wagons are the first to arrive. Next comes food and warmth. That tells you the importance of drinking water.
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