THE ESSENTIAL WATER
Water
Water covers 71% of the Earth's surface, mostly in seas and oceans.Small portions of water occur as groundwater (1.7%), in the glaciers and the ice capsof Antarctica and Greenland (1.7%), and in the air as vapor, clouds (consisting of ice and liquid water suspended in air), and precipitation (0.001%).Water moves continually through the water cycle of evaporation, transpiration (evapotranspiration), condensation, precipitation, and runoff, usually reaching the sea.
Water plays an important role in the world economy. Approximately 70% of the freshwater used by humans goes to agriculture. Fishing in salt and fresh water bodies is a major source of food for many parts of the world. Much of the long-distance trade of commodities(such as oil, natural gas, and manufactured products) is transported by boats through seas, rivers, lakes, and canals. Large quantities of water, ice, and steam are used for cooling and heating, in industry and homes. Water is an excellent solvent for a wide variety of substances both mineral and organic; as such it is widely used in industrial processes, and in cooking and washing. Water, ice and snow are also central to many sports and other forms of entertainment, such as swimming, pleasure boating, boat racing, surfing, sport fishing, diving, ice skating and skiing.
The importance of water
Water is one of the most important substances on earth. All plants and animals must have water to survive. If there was no water there would be no life on earth.
Apart from drinking it to survive, people have many other uses for water. These include:
- cooking
- washing their bodies
- washing clothes
- washing cooking and eating utensils; such as billies, saucepans, crockery and cutlery
- keeping houses and communities clean
- recreation; such as swimming pools
- keeping plants alive in gardens and parks
Water is also essential for the healthy growth of farm crops and farm stock and is used in the manufacture of many products.
It is most important that the water which people drink and use for other purposes is clean water. This means that the water must be free of germs and chemicals and be clear (not cloudy).
Water that is safe for drinking is called potable water.
Disease-causing germs and chemicals can find their way into water supplies. When this happens the water becomes polluted or contaminated and when people drink it or come in contact with it in other ways they can become very sick.
Water that is not safe to drink is said to be non-potable. Throughout history there have been many occasions when hundreds of thousands of people have died because disease-causing germs have been spread through a community by a polluted water supply.
One of the reasons this happens less frequently now is that people in many countries make sure drinking water supplies are potable. Water supplies are routinely checked for germs and chemicals which can pollute water. If the water is not safe to drink it is treated. All the action taken to make sure that drinking water is potable is called water treatment.
1. It helps create saliva
Water is a main component of saliva. Saliva also includes small amounts of electrolytes, mucus, and enzymes. It’s essential for breaking down solid food and keeping your mouth healthy.
Your body generally produces enough saliva with regular fluid intake. However, your saliva production may decrease as a result of age or certain medications or therapies.
If your mouth is drier than usual and increasing your water intake isn’t helping, see your doctor.
2. It regulates your body temperature
Staying hydrated is crucial to maintaining your body temperature. Your body loses water through sweat during physical activity and in hot environments.
Your sweat keeps your body cool, but your body temperature will rise if you don’t replenish the water you lose. That’s because your body loses electrolytes and plasma when it’s dehydrated.
If you’re sweating more than usual, make sure you drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration.
3. It protects your tissues, spinal cord, and joints
Water consumption helps lubricate and cushion your joints, spinal cord, and tissues. This will help you enjoy physical activity and lessen discomfort caused by conditions like arthritis.
4. It helps excrete waste through perspiration, urination, and defecation
Your body uses water to sweat, urinate, and have bowel movements.
Sweat regulates body temperature when you’re exercising or in warm temperatures. You need water to replenish the lost fluid from sweat.
You also need enough water in your system to have healthy stool and avoid constipation.
Your kidneys are also important for filtering out waste through urination. Adequate water intake helps your kidneys work more efficiently and helps to prevent kidney stones.
5. It helps maximize physical performance
Drinking plenty of water during physical activity is essential. Athletes may perspire up to
Hydration also affects your strength, power, and endurance.
You may be more susceptible to the effects of dehydration if you’re participating in endurance training or high-intensity sports such as basketball.
Negative effects of exercise in the heat without enough water can include serious medical conditions, like decreased blood pressure and hyperthermia. Extreme dehydration can cause seizures and even death.
6. It helps prevent constipation
Eating fiber isn’t the only way to prevent constipation. It’s also important to maintain your water intake so your bowel movements contain enough water.
If you don’t consume enough water, magnesium, and fiber, you may be more likely to experience constipation.
If you’re already constipated, you may find that drinking
7. It aids in digestion
Contrary to what some believe, experts confirm drinking water before, during, and after a meal will help your body break down the food you eat more easily. This will help you digest food more effectively and get the most out of your meals.
8. It helps with nutrient absorption
In addition to helping with food breakdown, water also helps dissolve vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from your food. It then delivers these vitamin components to the rest of your body for use.
9. It helps you lose weight
Studies have linked body fat and weight loss with drinking water in both overweight
10. It improves blood oxygen circulation
Water carries helpful nutrients and oxygen to your entire body. Reaching your daily water intake will improve your circulation and have a positive impact on your overall health.
11. It helps fight off illness
Drinking enough water can help prevent
- constipation
- kidney stones
- exercise-induced asthma
- urinary tract infection
- hypertension
Water also helps you absorb important vitamins, minerals, and nutrients from your food, which will increase your chances of staying healthy.
12. It helps boost energy
Drinking water may activate your metabolism. A boost in metabolism has been associated with a positive impact on energy level.
One study found that drinking 500 milliliters of water boosted the metabolic rate by 30 percent in both men and women. These effects appeared to last over an hour.
13. It aids in cognitive function
Proper hydration is key to staying in tip-top cognitive shape.
14. It helps improve mood
Not getting enough water can also affect your mood. Dehydration may result in fatigue and confusion as well as anxiety.
15. It helps keep skin bright
Adequate water intake will help keep your skin hydrated and may promote collagen production. However, water intake alone isn’t enough to reduce the effects of aging. This process is also connected to your genes and overall sun protection.
16. It prevents overall dehydration
Dehydration is the result of your body not having enough water. And because water is imperative to so many bodily functions, dehydration can be very dangerous.
Severe dehydration can result in a number of severe complications, including:
- swelling in your brain
- kidney failure
- seizures
Make sure you drink enough water to make up for what’s lost through sweat, urination, and bowel movements to avoid dehydration.
How much should you drink?
Being attentive to the amount of water you drink each day is important for optimal health. Most people drink when they’re thirsty, which helps regulate daily water intake.
According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, general water intake (from all beverages and foods) that meet most people’s needs are:
- about 15.5 cups of water (125 ounces) each day for men
- about 11.5 cups (91 ounces) daily for women
People get about 20 percent of their daily water intake from food. The rest is dependent on drinking water and water-based beverages. So, ideally men would consume about 100 ounces (3.0 liters) of water from beverages, and women, about 73 ounces (2.12 liters) from beverages.
You’ll have to increase your water intake if you’re exercising or living in a hotter region to avoid dehydration.
Other ways to assess hydration include your thirst and the color of your urine. Feeling thirsty indicates your body is not receiving adequate hydration. Urine that is dark or colored indicates dehydration. Pale or nonEvery day you lose water through your breath, perspiration, urine and bowel movements. For your body to function properly, you must replenish its water supply by consuming beverages and foods that contain water.
These recommendations cover fluids from water, other beverages and food. About 20% of daily fluid intake usually comes from food and the rest from drinks.
What about the advice to drink 8 glasses a day?
You've probably heard the advice to drink eight glasses of water a day. That's easy to remember, and it's a reasonable goal.
Most healthy people can stay hydrated by drinking water and other fluids whenever they feel thirsty. For some people, fewer than eight glasses a day might be enough. But other people might need more.
You might need to modify your total fluid intake based on several factors:
- Exercise. If you do any activity that makes you sweat, you need to drink extra water to cover the fluid loss. It's important to drink water before, during and after a workout.
- Environment. Hot or humid weather can make you sweat and requires additional fluid. Dehydration also can occur at high altitudes.
- Overall health. Your body loses fluids when you have a fever, vomiting or diarrhea. Drink more water or follow a doctor's recommendation to drink oral rehydration solutions. Other conditions that might require increased fluid intake include bladder infections and urinary tract stones.
- Pregnancy and breast-feeding. If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, you may need additional fluids to stay hydrated.
Is water the only option for staying hydrated?
No. You don't need to rely only on water to meet your fluid needs. What you eat also provides a significant portion. For example, many fruits and vegetables, such as watermelon and spinach, are almost 100% water by weight.
In addition, beverages such as milk, juice and herbal teas are composed mostly of water. Even caffeinated drinks — such as coffee and soda — can contribute to your daily water intake. But go easy on sugar-sweetened drinks. Regular soda, energy or sports drinks, and other sweet drinks usually contain a lot of added sugar, which may provide more calories than needed.-colored urine typically indicates proper hydration.
Every day you lose water through your breath, perspiration, urine and bowel movements. For your body to function properly, you must replenish its water supply by consuming beverages and foods that contain water.
So how much fluid does the average, healthy adult living in a temperate climate need? The U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine determined that an adequate daily fluid intake is
These recommendations cover fluids from water, other beverages and food. About 20% of daily fluid intake usually comes from food and the rest from drinks.
Benefits of Drinking Water
1. Helps maximize physical performance
If you don’t stay hydrated, your physical performance can suffer.
This is particularly important during intense exercise or high heat.
Dehydration can have a noticeable effect if you lose as little as 2% of your body’s water content. However, it isn’t uncommon for athletes to lose as much as 6–10% of their water weight via sweat (
This can lead to altered body temperature control, reduced motivation, and increased fatigue. It can also make exercise feel much more difficult, both physically and mentally .
Optimal hydration has been shown to prevent this from happening, and it may even reduce the oxidative stress that occurs during high intensity exercise. This isn’t surprising when you consider that muscle is about 80% water (
If you exercise intensely and tend to sweat, staying hydrated can help you perform at your absolute best.
2. Significantly affects energy levels and brain function
Your brain is strongly influenced by your hydration status.
Studies show that even mild dehydration, such as the loss of 1–3% of body weight, can impair many aspects of brain function.
In a study in young women, researchers found that fluid loss of 1.4% after exercise impaired both mood and concentration. It also increased the frequency of headaches (
Many members of this same research team conducted a similar study in young men. They found that fluid loss of 1.6% was detrimental to working memory and increased feelings of anxiety and fatigue.
A fluid loss of 1–3% equals about 1.5–4.5 pounds (0.5–2 kg) of body weight loss for a person weighing 150 pounds (68 kg). This can easily occur through normal daily activities, let alone during exercise or high heat.
Many other studies, with subjects ranging from children to older adults, have shown that mild dehydration can impair mood, memory, and brain performance
3. May help prevent and treat headaches
Dehydration can trigger headaches and migraine in some individuals (
Research has shown that a headache is one of the most common symptoms of dehydration. For example, a study in 393 people found that 40% of the participants experienced a headache as a result of dehydration (
What’s more, some studies have shown that drinking water can help relieve headaches in those who experience frequent headaches.
A study in 102 men found that drinking an additional 50.7 ounces (1.5 liters) of water per day resulted in significant improvements on the Migraine-Specific Quality of Life scale, a scoring system for migraine symptoms.
Plus, 47% of the men who drank more water reported headache improvement, while only 25% of the men in the control group reported this effect .
However, not all studies agree, and researchers have concluded that because of the lack of high quality studies, more research is needed to confirm how increasing hydration may help improve headache symptoms and decrease headache frequency.
4. May help relieve constipation
Constipation is a common problem that’s characterized by infrequent bowel movements and difficulty passing stool.
Increasing fluid intake is often recommended as a part of the treatment protocol, and there’s some evidence to back this up.
Low water consumption appears to be a risk factor for constipation in both younger and older individuals (
Increasing hydration may help decrease constipation.
Mineral water may be a particularly beneficial beverage for those with constipation.
Studies have shown that mineral water that’s rich in magnesium and sodium improves bowel movement frequency and consistency in people with constipation
5. May help treat kidney stones
Urinary stones are painful clumps of mineral crystal that form in the urinary system.
The most common form is kidney stones, which form in the kidneys.
There’s limited evidence that water intake can help prevent recurrence in people who have previously gotten kidney stones .
Higher fluid intake increases the volume of urine passing through the kidneys. This dilutes the concentration of minerals, so they’re less likely to crystallize and form clumps.
Water may also help prevent the initial formation of stones, but studies are required to confirm this.
6. Helps prevent hangovers
A hangover refers to the unpleasant symptoms experienced after drinking alcohol.
Alcohol is a diuretic, so it makes you lose more water than you take in. This can lead to dehydration .
Although dehydration isn’t the main cause of hangovers, it can cause symptoms like thirst, fatigue, headache, and dry mouth.
Good ways to reduce hangoversare to drink a glass of water between drinks and have at least one big glass of water before going to bed.
7. Can aid weight loss
Drinking plenty of water can help you lose weight.
This is because water can increase satiety and boost your metabolic rate.
Some evidence suggests that increasing water intake can promote weight loss by slightly increasing your metabolism, which can increase the number of calories you burn on a daily basis.
A 2013 study in 50 young women with overweight demonstrated that drinking an additional 16.9 ounces (500 mL) of water 3 times per day before meals for 8 weeks led to significant reductions in body weight and body fat compared with their pre-study measurements .
The timing is important too. Drinking water half an hour before meals is the most effective. It can make you feel more full so that you eat fewer calories .
In one study, dieters who drank 16.9 ounces (0.5 liters) of water before meals lost 44% more weight over a period of 12 weeks than dieters who didn’t drink water before meals .
Effects Of Not Drinking Enough Water
Whatever you do, make sure you get in those six to eight glasses, otherwise dehydration could cause a whole host of problems. Here are a few side effects:
- Persistent headaches. One of the first things you might notice when you’re dehydrated is a throbbing headache. The good news? If dehydration is the cause, it should go away shortly after you drink a large glass of water.
- Sluggish bowel function. “There are water receptors in the colon, and they pull water from the body to make the stools softer,” says Dr. Moghaddam. “If you don’t get enough water, hard stools and constipation could be common side effects, along with abdominal pain and cramps.”
- Dull skin. Dehydration shows up on your face in the form of dry, ashy skin that seems less radiant, plump and elastic.
- Fatigue. If you’re not replenishing your fluid intake, your energy levels could plummet and you could experience fatigue and brain fog. So the next time you reach for another cup of coffee, see if it’s water that you need instead.
- Weight gain. “Sometimes people mistake thirst for hunger and they eat more, but really they just need to drink more,” says Dr. Moghaddam. “Sometimes if you have a glass of water, the hunger cues will go away.”
- Dry mouth. If you’re not getting enough water, you can have dry mucous membranes—i.e., a lack of saliva. This can make it difficult to talk, swallow, and even breathe. Luckily, this can easily be solved by drinking water.
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