Water helps you lose weight!

You are able to avoid problems caused by dehydration.

• false cravings or hunger
• headache or migraine
• fatigue due to
• slow blood flow to your organs
• slow activity of enzymes needed for energy production
• difficulty in extracting energy from digested food

More uses of water

It lubricates your muscles. It also improves cognitive ability. It helps to transport nutrients and eliminate waste. It works in regulating body temperature. It helps in metabolism, which involves various processes in your body tissues and cells. It prevents constipation, hypertension, and kidney stones.

Your body works most efficiently during heavy activity with sufficient hydration. You are less vulnerable to injuries, illness, and fatigue. With water, your body temperature cools down during high level activity.

You also need sufficient hydration to dilute certain ingredients (like sodium) in coffee, sodas, and other beverages before your body absorbs and eliminates them. Otherwise, your stomach and small intestines pull water from the rest of your body. You end up dehydrated and might have a bloated feeling.

You can experience better recovery from illness and injury when you are sufficiently hydrated. You can eliminate waste (or toxins) and have better blood flow into and through injured areas.

How much water do you need each day?

A more specific guide is to divide your weight (in pounds) by two to give the number of ounces you need daily. For example, if your weight is 140 pounds, you need to drink 140 / 2 = 70 ounces per day.

You can also divide your weight (in kilograms) by 30 to give the number of liters you need daily. So if you weigh 70 kilograms, you need 70 / 30 = 2.3 liters per day.

The amount really varies depending on your age, activity level, lifestyle, and your environment. For example, you need to drink more if you are very active or in a hot environment. You may lose three to six liters per day. When you are exercising, you can lose as much as one to two liters per hour.

Info bits: The US Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies recommends daily consumption to be about 2.7 liters (91 ounces) for women and about 3.7 liters (125 ounces daily) for men. This is for daily hydration from all beverages and foods. Prolonged physical activity and/or heat exposure increase water loss and raise daily hydration requirements.

Hydrating drinks

If your hydrating drink has calories, those calories could be from its ingredients like fructose or sugar.

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