Why do we need more fluids now than before?

Before the 1990s, you hardly see anyone carrying a bottle of water or any container for hydration, to drink fluids from.  This is especially true in our city of Baguio. Except, of course, for those who have flasks with them that contains alcohol like gin, rhum, brandy or vodka. (that's more for dehydration ... hehehe)  Does this mean that people now easily get dehydrated?

During the earlier years there were soft drinks and other bottled fluids that you could easily buy almost anywhere.  They were sufficient to quench thirst or 're-hydrate' people then!  What is the difference between then and now?  Why does it seem that we need to water our mouths more now than before? 

I did not offer an answer here and that's the reason for the title of this post.  Any scientist out there to give an answer or explanation to this?  If your answer is global warming, forget about it, that's what I have in mind.

Sickness & Health

If my memory serves me right, until my mid-20s, the most dreaded and contracted diseases then were Venereal diseases. Nothing really much about cancer, and AIDS was still unknown. For resurgent or re-surging diseases, I don't remember any except me contracting measles twice long after my first one during childhood. As for health and fitness, we used to play basketball all day, sometimes even into the night on concrete floors and hardly any of us had injuries that would side-line us for more than a week! There were also no energy or re-hydration drinks! Coke or other soft drinks were enough! There was no mineral or bottled water too.

Now we have to contend with deadly Influenza (Flu), and Pneumonia that has caused the demise of many who about to be discharged from the hospital! Tuberculosis (TB) is still much around. Cancer, AIDS and other debilitating diseases are causing much problems especially with the cost of health care! Sports athletes seem to be "weaker" because they get side-lined in spite of modern techniques, medicines and exercises to tune them up! There are all kinds of energy sports drinks and energy bars but don't seem to serve their purpose! Survival is now getting to be more challenging even with the advances in technology.

See what AH1N1 is doing now to the world!

Passing Away

From August 2000 to April 24, 2001 we had 4 deaths in the family. First was our sister-in-law in August, followed by our father in September 12, lost our sister to cancer in November 4, then our mother in April 24 of 2001.

On April 11, 2009, almost exactly 8 years after, my brother passed away with complications from kidney failure that led to cardiac arrest. He is the husband of my sister-in-law who passed away in August of 2000. Though he would be 70 on September of this year, it was difficult to accept that he succumbed to an unlikely disease, uncommon in our family, just like the sister we lost to cancer.

Death is a reality that will happen to us all and must be accepted. But acceptance becomes difficult if the cause is not natural or it was untimely. It was a lot easier to accept the passing of our father and mother as they were 88 and 85 years of age then respectively. It was really about time for them to rest because 5 years before their demise, life was quite difficult for them to get along with. They both passed away quietly without pain. Our sister and brother faced the fact that their time was about to come for months. It was as difficult for them as it was for us. Their quality of life was way below normal during the months after they were diagnosed. The treatments and hospitalizations were more of an agony for them as it was for us seeing them in that state.