Your Daily Water Intake - Mother Natures Magic Health Elixir

Why drink water? Because your daily water intake is life giving. The health benefits of drinking water cannot be overly stressed. Maintaining sufficient daily water intake is strongly recommended by every weight loss program, every fitness trainer, every nutritionist. And, so do we.

It is very tough for the body to differentiate hunger from thirst. By not drinking sufficient water throughout the day, you could mistake thirst for hunger, therefore eat more than you really need, which could obviously impair weight loss efforts. So staying well hydrated takes on added importance.

There are some indications that drinking water increases metabolism, although it is not clinically proven.

Why You Need to Drink Water

Your body is estimated to be about 60 to 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water, and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs.

Signs of Dehydration

You lose water through respiration, urination, and by sweating. Active people lose more water than sedentary people. Through the activities of daily living, the average person loses about 3- 4 liters (about 10-15 cups) of fluid a day. What is lost must be replaced by the water/ fluid we drink and in the food we eat.Symptoms of mild dehydration include chronic pains in joints and muscles, lower back pain, headaches and constipation. Thirst is an obvious sign of dehydration and in fact, you need water long before you feel thirsty.

Monitor your urine to make sure you are not dehydrated:

• A hydrated body produces clear, colorless, odorless urine.
• A somewhat dehydrated body produces yellow urine with some odor.
• A severely dehydrated body produces orange or dark-colored urine with strong odor.

How Much Water Should You Drink?

Here’s the age-old question: Just how much water should you drink? A good estimate of water intake is to take your body weight in pounds and divide that number in half. That gives you the approximate number of ounces of water per day that you need to drink. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, you should drink at least 100 ounces of water per day. If you exercise you should drink another eight ounce glass of water for every 20 minutes you are active. If you drink alcohol, you should drink at least an equal amount of water. When you are traveling on an airplane, it is good to drink eight ounces of water for every hour you are on board the plane. If you live in an arid climate, you should add another two servings per day. As you can see, your daily need for water can add up to quite a lot.

What Should We Drink? What Shouldn’t We Drink?

We are designed to drink pure, natural water.

• Avoiding sodas/soft drinks to provide your fluid needs. The high sugar content and artificial flavors in soft drinks are harmful to your health.
• Tea, coffee, soft drinks contain water, but the diuretics contained in these caffeinated beverages flush water out of your body. They do NOT replenish fluid loss.
• An infrequent soda or coffee is OK, but constantly drinking them without drinking enough pure natural water can severely compromise your long-term health.
• Natural pure water is the best choice. If you are committed to a healthy lifestyle and long-term health, make water a habit and a priority in your life.

Here’s one final tip for the benefit of the environment. You should purchase a reusable water bottle, something you can refill over and over again. Buying one time use plastic bottles is harmful to the environment and contributes to the growth of your local landfill.