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By
Dr. Joseph Mercola
with Rachael Droege
How many of you have heard that we are dehydrated and need to drink
at least eight eight-ounce glasses of water a day? I know that is
what I have traditionally been exposed to. I used to advise that
people follow an even more refined rule of thumb--for every 50 pounds
of body weight you carry, drink one quart of spring or filtered
water per day. This would increase daily water intake to 12 to 16
glasses for most of us.
However, after awhile I began to question this and I further refined
my recommendations to use the color of your urine as a guide to
how much water you should be drinking. As long as you are not taking
riboflavin (vitamin B2), which fluoresces and turns your urine bright
yellow (it is also in most multi-vitamins), then your urine should
be a very light-colored yellow. If it is a deep yellow then you
are likely not drinking enough water.
So I was delighted to read in my Family
Practice Newspaper that an Institute of Medicine Panel actually
reached the same rational conclusion. They rejected the conventional
wisdom that people need to drink eight glasses of water a day and
concluded that on a daily basis people get enough water from normal
drinking behavior, such as drinking beverages at meals and in other
social situations, and by letting their thirst guide them.
This is not to say that getting enough water isn’t important.
We can exist without food for months, but without water we can only
survive for a few days. Your body is made up mostly of water, which:
- Is essential for digestion, nutrient absorption and
elimination
- Aids circulation
- Helps control the body's temperature
- Lubricates and cushions joints
- Keeps the skin healthy
- Helps remove toxins from your body
Every day you lose water from the body through urine and sweat,
and this fluid needs to be replenished. However, your body has come
equipped with a mechanism that tells you when you need to replenish
your supply--it’s called thirst!
Let Your Thirst be Your Guide
When your body begins to lose from 1 percent to 2 percent of its
total water, your thirst mechanism lets you know that it’s
time to drink some water. If you are healthy, then drinking whenever
you feel thirsty should be an adequate guide of how much water you
need. You can confirm whether you are drinking enough water by looking
at the color of your urine, as mentioned above.
Of course, if it’s hot outside or you are engaged in exercise
or other vigorous activity, you will require more water than normal
so be sure to stay well hydrated in these cases. Additionally, as
we grow older our thirst mechanism works less efficiently so older
adults will want to be sure to drink water regularly, and again
make sure their urine is a light, pale color.
Don’t Overlook Water Quality
Perhaps the question we should have been asking for so long is
not how much water should we be drinking, but what type of water
should we be drinking? The answer is clean, spring water and filtered
water--I do not recommend drinking tap water or distilled
water. Contrary to the traditional belief, it’s also important
to avoid fluoridated
water.
One of the most important steps you should take for your own health
and the health of your family is to ensure the safety of your tap
water
supply. This will help you to determine what type of filter
you need to make sure your water is free from heavy metals, bacteria
and other harmful contaminants.
The reason why filtering your own water is so important is because
you really want to avoid bottled
water unless it is absolutely necessary as it is a huge strain
on the environment. Plus, some bottled water may
not be any cleaner than tap water. On a side note, remember
to avoid storing your water in typical Nalgene
bottles as they can leach an unsafe chemical called BPA
into your water. I recently switched to the high-density polyethelene
(HDPE) Nalgene bottles, which appear to be safer, to store my water
when I go on trips and cannot use a glass bottle.
If you are interested in reading more about this topic, then you
will want to review this 500-page report from the National
Academic Press, which includes a comprehensive discussion of
water and human health.
Related Articles:
The Absurdities
of Water Fluoridation
Why I Now Say
No to Distilled Water Only
Warning! That Glass
of Drinking Water Is Recycled
Another Reason
Why Women Can Retain Water Explains Why Too Much Water Can Harm
Marathon Runners
More Than 50% of Children
Drinking Fluoridated Water Have Fluorosis
Coke Wants to Fool You
With Their Bottled Water
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