In my opinion, water is the most imporant of the essential nutrients (the essential nutrients being water, carbohydrate, fat, protein, vitamins, and minerals). Water has many functions in the body including the transport of nutrients, waste removal, body temperature regulation, and joint lubrication to name a few. Hopefully my telling you that water is important doesn't come as a surprise, but if it did listen up. You probably learned in high school science class that the human body is mostly made of water (about 60%) so it makes sense that you need to drink it to stay alive, but how much? That's where it gets a little tricky. The conventional wisdom was to drink 8 8 fl oz (1 cup) glasses of water a day for a total of 64 fl oz but scientists are starting to realize that those may not be the best recommendations. Think about it, why would a 110 lb female and a 230 pound male need the same amount of water? They don't. There are a couple of ways to estimate water needs. The first is to take your weight in pounds and divide that number in half. That equals the amount of water in ounces that you should drink daily. For example, if you weight 140 lbs, you would need to drink about 70 oz of fluid each day. It has also been noted that people need about 1-1.5 ml of water for every calorie they expend. So if you know how many calories you burn on a daily basis you could estimate that way as well. If you are an athlete or highly active person your needs may be greater, especially if you are a heavy sweater (see my Hydration for Athletes blog).
Another factor to consider is that all foods and beverages contain some amount of water. So when I say "water needs" what I actually mean is fluid needs, and you don't have to meet your fluid needs from plain water alone. That soup you had at lunch and the lemonade with dinner count towards your daily fluid needs. However, caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, meaning they cause your body to lose water, so they don't count (sorry).
Since there are a lot of variables and you probably don't want to do any complicated calculations to figure out how much water is in your cheese or how much water you urinate after your morning coffee follow my simple tips below to stay hydrated.
1. Start by calculating your water needs using the general equation I provided above (dividing your weight in half).
2. Try drinking small amounts frequently instead of large amounts sporadically. This should help prevent you from having to run to the bathroom as much.
3. Focus on hitting your target number by drinking low or no calorie and caffeine free (or very low caffeine) beverages such as water, herbal teas, Crystal Light, Propel etc. Plain water is best but if it's too boring for you add some cucumber or fresh fruit slices for a hint of flavor. Calorie free flavored beverages are okay in moderation but don't rely on them as they usually contain artificial sweeteners.
4. Alcohol and highly caffeinated beverages such as coffee and energy drinks do not count towards your daily total. However, don't worry about how much water they cause you to lose. Unless you are consuming excessive amounts of caffeine (which you shouldn't be) it's not enough to worry about especially since....
5. We're not going to calcualte the amount of water in the foods you eat. You will drive yourself crazy trying to figure out how many ounces of water are in your egg white omelet. There are references out there but in my opinion there is no need for the average person (meaning without chronic disease, not an elite athlete) to be that obsessive about it.
Although cases of water toxicity have been documented they are rare and usually the result of consuming extreme amounts of water in a short amount of time. You will not reach toxic levels by following the guidelines above.
If you are an athlete, consult my Hydration for Athletes blog for specific recommendations.
Cheers!
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