Quench your body.
This week’s Brave New Girls podcast guest is Gina Bria, an anthropologist and founder of the Hydration Foundation, recognized as a leading resource for hydration science and education. Gina is the co-author, with Dr. Dana Cohen, MD, of QUENCH: Your Five-Day Plan to Optimal Hydration, a book recommended by the New York Times, Oprah’s O Magazine, and NPR’s Cool Science.
There’s often one big, overlooked culprit for our common maladies: dehydration. Humans are 65% water. So when we’re dehydrated, our bodies begin to slowly shut down, causing headaches, fatigue, joint pain, weight gain, and even contributing to autoimmune disorders we usually attribute to other causes.
Gina’s Journey and Insights
Gina came to this work as an anthropologist studying desert communities. What fascinated her was how people thrived in extreme environments with little access to drinking water. Their secret? Hydrating with plants. Foods like cactus, aloe, chia seeds, and tubers provided water in a gel-like plasma state, perfectly structured for human absorption.
This insight transformed Gina’s own life. When her mother was chronically dehydrated in a nursing home, Gina introduced ground chia seeds into her drinks. That small shift ended her dehydration incidents and allowed her to thrive into her late 90s. It’s a story that underpins the message of Quench: hydration is not just about guzzling glasses of water, it’s about absorbing and distributing water in smarter ways.
Eating more plants and smelling premium grade (unadulterated, organic) essential oils also help to hydrate our system.
Gina reminds us that hydration impacts everything—our mood, resilience, cognition, even perception. A mere 2% drop in hydration leads to measurable cognitive decline.
On the other hand, when we’re well hydrated, our brains, fascia, joints, and cells communicate and perform more effectively. We become more alive, resilient, and connected.
Brave New Girl- How to Be Fearless.
10 Actionable Steps for a better future.
Eat hydrating foods daily – cucumbers, lettuce, apples, and watermelon are water-rich and cell-ready.
Add chia seeds – one teaspoon soaked in water creates a gel that delivers plasma water directly to your cells.
Drink smoothies – an easy way to pack diverse hydrating fruits and greens into one glass.
Pair dry foods with plants – if you’re eating something processed, add a side salad or fruit.
Move regularly – even small stretches distribute hydration through tissues and joints.
Get sunlight – natural light reorganizes water molecules in the body for better absorption.
Listen to uplifting sounds – sound vibrations, like music or sound baths, help water molecules structure more effectively.
Use essential oils – inhaling plant essences brings hydration-supporting plant information into your body.
Practice nighttime hydration – try chia pudding before bed to hydrate overnight without bathroom trips.
Grow microgreens – fresh sprouts like broccoli and alfalfa add hydration-rich plant intelligence to meals and smoothies.
Hydration is not just about drinking more, it’s about partnering with plant food, essential oils, movement, light, and even sound to keep our bodies resilient and thriving. As Gina says, real hydration is about buoyancy: it lifts our mood, our health, and our connection to life.
PS. Listen HERE to GINA’S journey on BRAVE NEW GIRLS podcast to hear how she helps us create well beings on a well planet.
