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Friday 1 July 2011

8 glasses of water.....??


With up to 78% of our body’s weight being water, it’s a bit startling that with just a 1-2% water loss in the body, dehydration symptoms would begin to kick-in.
What starts out as thirst, discomfort and loss of appetite and energy, turns into headache, dizziness and delirium – eventually leading to unconsciousness and death.
We lose a lot of our water through
  • Sweating (significantly more with exercise)
  • Urination
  • Bowel movements (significantly more with diarrhea)
  • Breathing
Needless to say we need to replenish ourselves.
But do we really need 8 glasses of water per day?
It’s a good rule of thumb, but there are a few arguments about this.
Some might adjust this to say “drink eight, 8-ounce glasses of fluid per day”.
Contrary to what many of us have heard, all fluids can count towards the “8 glasses” – juices, coffee, tea, milk, even soft-drinks.
Foods count as well – contributing about 20% of our daily fluid intake.
But before we get too reckless…beer and pretzels are probably not the best option to rehydrate ourselves. In fact, alohol, soft-drinks, coffee, etc. should be taken in moderation.
Water is the wisest choice, as are foods with high water content – like fruits and vegetables.
“We never know the worth of water till the well is dry.” (Thomas Fuller)

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