Drinking the right amount of water every day may just be the easiest way to live a healthier life. Although it may sound silly, many people don’t realize how important drinking the right amount each day is. Even being dehydrated a little can affect you in ways you don’t know – especially if you can’t tell you’re dehydrated.
Water composes around 60 percent of a human’s body weight. Every organ system and living cell in the human body requires water to function. According to the Mayo Clinic, water “flushes toxins out of vital organs, carries nutrients to your cells, and provides a moist environment for ear, nose and throat tissues.”
A lack of water can lead to surprising health detriments very quickly. Mild dehydration will tire out the human body and make the mind lethargic. By the time you start craving water – for example, you have a thirst and dry mouth – mild dehydration has already kicked in.
Proper water consumption does more than just stop dehydration. Kidney and bowel function improve immensely. In addition, your skin and muscles will function marginally better.
Drinking water also has more health benefits than people imagine. Surprisingly, many people have had success with weight loss by drinking the right amount of water and drinking it when they have hunger or sugar cravings.
The right amount of water you should drink every day varies per person, but the general rule of thumb is an eight by eight rule. This means to consume eight eight-ounce glasses of fluid every day. However, it should be taken into account that this means total fluid consumption, not just drinking pure water. Fluids taken in from different areas such as soups or other drinks like milk count towards this daily total.
Obviously, environmental factors can influence the amount of water you need to drink as well. Things such as working out, the environment, and illnesses can all affect how much water you need to drink per day. All of these things may increase water use throughout your body.
However, there is also a thing as drinking too much water. Overdrinking can lead to lower sodium levels in your blood. This happens as a result of the kidneys not being able to process all the extra amount of fluids in your body and thus diluting the minerals in your bloodstream. This condition, although potentially serious, is extremely rare among average US adults.
