In the past we have discussed the importance of water to the existence of life. In the coming weeks we shall be looking at the source of water supply and the need to have a good healthy water. A good drinking water is a clear, sparkling, colourless, tasteless liquid without smell and free from harmful matter such as chemicals, organic substance, or micro-organisms. Water contracts as it is cooled as do most other substances but it starts to expand again when its temperature is reduced beiow 4degree centigrade, cooled below that it continues to expand until at 0 degree centigrade, It changes to ice with considerable and sudden expansion. This curios behavior explains why ice forms on the tops of ponds and lakes, leaving breathing space for fish just under it, and why water frozen in enclosed spaces burst pipes and splits rocks.
Underground water often contains minerals most of which have been proved to be of value to the body. Two such minerals are iodine and fluorine. Iodine is required by the thyroid gland to produce thyroxin. Deficiency of this substance in water tends to cause the thyroid to enlarge. If a pregnant woman is short of iodine she may give birth to a stunted imbecile child also suffering from thyroid deficiency. To offset this deficiency iodine can be added to water supply to be deficient or by the use of iodized table salt. Fluorine is the other substance sometimes found to be deficient and this is believed to be responsible for a certain amount of dental decay. Reports have shown substantial improvements in dental health of young children in fluoridization areas, with considerable reduction in the permanent teeth of children up to 10 years.
WATER REQUIREMENTS OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE COMMUNITY
The average person thinks of pure water as bacteriologically and chemically safe but a chemist idea of pure water is that which has been distilled and is therefore pure compound water. The overall average amount of water used per head of the population in this country is about 40 gallons per head per day. It is rather more than this in the cities and towns because of the number and variety of public services and industries. Waste of water for any reason should be prevented.
Water is provided for the following purposes.
1. Individual -household and domestic use-for drinking, cooking and personal washing, flushing lavatories. Household laundry, washing and cleaning, car washing and watering the garden.
2. Municipal- for cleaning streets and flushing sewers, public lavatories, baths, swimming pools and fire fighting services. Hospitals, schools and other institutions.
3. Trade.
4. Unavoidable waste.
Children should be taught from an early age to avoid unnecessary waste of water. Healing words
“My son, attend to my words, incline thine ears unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes, keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them and health to their flesh”. Prov. 4 : 20-22.
God’s word is medicine. According to the New Strong Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible the Hebrew word in verse 22 translated health actually means medicine. In other words this scripture actually says they (God’s words) are a life unto those that find them and medicine unto their flesh. God’s word is this medicine notice the passage begins with “my son attend to my words”. To attend to God’s is to put His words first. Then we are told to incline our hearts unto his words or listen to them. Finally we are told to keep his word in the midst of our heart
