How Does not Drinking Water Affect Us?

by Fern Shaw | Jul 8, 2024 | Water, water cooler, Water Coolers

I know I’m always blathering on about drink water, keep hydrated, drink water, hydration, drink water, but honest-to-goodness, when you do the type of research that I do, trust me, there are monster-sized reasons for this advice.

But, to switch things up a little, I’m going to reverse the blather and look at it from another perspective.

Not Drinking Water Means:

• A mere two percent drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic maths and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
• Even mild dehydration will slow down one’s metabolism by as much as three percent.
• Lack of water is the number one trigger of daytime fatigue.
• A mere two percent drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic maths and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
• Preliminary research has shown that up to eighty percent of people suffering from back and joint pain could have these pains significantly reduced by drinking between eight to ten glasses of water a day.
• Our digestive systems need a good amount of water to digest food properly. Not drinking water leads to too much stomach acidity and constipation.
• By not drinking water, the thirst mechanism becomes so weak it is often mistaken for hunger. We all know where that leads.

As evidence of the disservice we do to ourselves by not drinking sufficient water continues to mount up and with refreshing drinking water available to us at the turn of a tap or a press of a button gives me reason enough to become a little bit of a water warrior (I was going to say an H2O agony aunt, but that’s just rather unappealing).

You get the gist. Topping up, refilling and replenishing your water bottle or glass is the simplest and most effective manner in which to reduce daytime fatigue, false hunger pangs all while increasing our metabolism rate and our ability to focus.

Earth Day – Planet vs. Plastics

by Fern Shaw | Apr 23, 2024 | Water, water cooler, Water Coolers

At AquAid we are keenly aware of the impact using plastic has in our industry, to our customers and on our environment. This Earth Day we felt it important to reiterate our ongoing commitment in seeking solutions and alternatives to reduce waste, minimise our carbon footprint and increase the sustainable provision of our water and water products to our customers.

Potential long-term options?

1. Paper cups/cones

Paper cups may seem like an obvious alternative, but they are not. As paper is porous, all cups contain a lining which means that they cannot easily be recycled.  Unfortunately, although few people may be aware of this, if you are paying to recycle paper cups, these lined cups actually contaminate the recycling batch they go into.

There are cones available without a plastic lining, but they will only hold water for a matter of seconds before it will start seeping through and leak onto surfaces or on the floor. Whilst these are useful from an environmental perspective, they are less useful from a hydration perspective; the reason organisations have a water dispenser in the first place.

Paper cups cost around 50% more than plastic, with cones priced slightly lower.

2. Plastic bottles

There is a place for reusable plastic bottles, however, we need to be aware that a plastic bottle weighs at least 30 times more than does a plastic cup. This then means that using plastic bottles is adding plastic weight and volume rather than reducing it. Even if you re-use a plastic bottle (which some people will re-use 30 times, but others much less so) it has to be borne in mind that the bottle needs to be cleaned which has its own environmental impact.

3. Use bio-degradable/compostable material

The idea of using bio-degradable plastic is very appealing at first as people picture it literally turning into dust.  The problem is that in order for the plastic to compost, it needs to be kept in very specific circumstances only achievable in an industrial composting environment. Not only are there very few such facilities in the UK, there are also no nationwide collection schemes in place for them.  If bio-degradable cups end up in landfill they can be more harmful to the environment than normal plastic cups, as is indicated in various reports and case studies from authorities in the field*.  Added to this, bio-degradable plastic is made from corn starch – which again brings with it a significant impact on the environment. As a final point, bio-degradable plastic is considerably more expensive than regular plastic.

The solution

Because of the focus directed at the issue of single use cups, we may be forgetting the difference between litter and recycling. Plastic on its own is not an issue – unrecycled plastic is. Bearing this in mind, we believe there is a viable solution, one which will be of benefit to not only ourselves and our customers, but also to our environment.

Recycling plastic cups

Upon consultation with a number of recycling authorities, in particular BIFFA, a leading integrated waste management company, we’ve established as follows:

• The cups that AquAid supply are made of a single type of plastic. The benefit of this is that easy to recycle and a valuable resource that can be repurposed and resold.
• Our plastic cups are easily recycled if placed in a dry mixed recycling (DMR) bin. These are bins which take cans, paper, cardboard and plastic. Not only will the material placed in a DMR be recycled, but DMR bins cheaper to have emptied than a normal waste bin.

We believe that we have established a practical, cost effective and viable solution to using our drinking cups and are inviting our customers to contact their local recycling companies to confirm that they offer the dry mixed recycling bins (DMR), to assist with the recycling of not only plastic cups, but also the many other recyclable items found in offices up and down the country.

* sources: articles in The Guardian; UN News