It’s a fairly known fact that the adult human body is typically 60% made out of water. Hence comes the common sense that if you happen to become dehydrated, you have to drink water to get well. It’s an instinctual event, this is why our body developed the essential mechanism of thirst. The European Food Standards Authority (EFSA) seems to think otherwise though and has officially warranted, according to three year long study, that water does not prevent dehydration, and as such bottled water manufactures should not advertise this statement on labels or during campaigns.
I kid you not, this is for real and the European scientists who have made these findings public have already had their share of scrutiny – more like ridicule. Nevertheless, the new law goes into effect next month into the UK, and as such any person found responsible of advertising that water prevents dehydration will risk two years of prison.
“This is extremely dangerous because what they’re going to do is someone’s going to read a portion of this study and say, well, I don’t need water. Then they’re going to stop drinking water,” said Priority Health’s Dr. Randy Shuck.
This becomes extremely confusing when you consider that the NHS health guidelines state clearly that drinking water helps avoid dehydration, and that people should drink at least 1.2 liters per day (half a gallon). Regarding the current event, the EFSA acknowledges that “water contributes to the maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions” and “water contributes to the maintenance of normal thermoregulation”, which can be labeled on bottles. Still, according to them water doesn’t meet the EFSA standards regarding dehydration prevention.
“This shows not only the folly with regards to the claim but the degree of intrusiveness which the commission thinks it should exercise with commercial processes,” said Roger Helmer, the Conservative MEP who spoke out against the original decision.
“We have got half a billion people in Europe, if each product we eat and drink has to be passed by the commission first then that is just extraordinary.”