Despite the fact that I get called cheap by everyone I know, I'm that guy that always orders water in a restaurant.
I'll class it up by calling it "Chateau Reservoir."
If you're in the same boat (bad water joke) and are conscious of your water intake pat yourself on the back for a job well done. If you find yourself neglecting it, here are four reasons you need to be drinking more of it, today.
1. Water Maintains A Balance Of Body Fluids
Your body is similar to a car, in my case a broke down El Camino, in that water is like motor oil, without it, you can't expect it to run properly. Water is needed in order for body fluids to be engaged in:
- Digestion
- Absorption
- Circulation
- Transport of nutrients through the body
- Balance of body temperature
2. Water Helps Flush Out Toxins
One of the jobs of body fluids, besides supplying tears for me to cry watching The Notebook, is to transport waste in and out of the cells. Your kidneys are involved in this process and they do an amazing job of ridding the body of toxins provided they have enough fluids to do so.
You will know you are well hydrated by the colour and odour of your urine. When you are well hydrated it will appear straw coloured with no discernible odour. When you are dehydrated it will be darker coloured with an odour as the kidneys are now trapping extra fluids in order to meet body function requirements.
3. A Lack Of Water Affects Brain Performance
Probably safe to say the entire Kardashian family is SEVERELY dehydrated.
Water is essential for every cell, tissue and organ in the body and the brain is no exception. It is however very easy to become dehydrated due to the fact we lose around 80 ounces of water each day sweating. Not from exercise sweat but just the natural sweat that occurs over the course of the day.
Since the average person is consuming less than that a day we have a real problem on our hands and if you're interested in your brain working on your side you'll want to bump up that water intake. A lack of water can lead to problems with:
- Focus
- Memory
- Brain fatigue
- Concentration
- Headaches
- Sleep issues
- Depression
Your brain needs water to function properly and if more people were hydrated there's a good chance Donald Trump would not be getting the votes that he is.
4. Water Helps Reduce Hunger and Prevent Overeating
This might be of concern to you if you're interested in losing weight and getting healthier. The truth is it's not that hard to fall into a state of dehydration which isn't as traumatic as it sounds, you might not even fully notice it. One way that you might notice is that you may feel hungrier. Sometimes the signals of dehydration are confused with hunger and can lead to overeating. During those times, or before meals, having a glass or two of water can help prevent this.
The other way water is important in weight loss and weight management is that the higher water content in food can help control the urges to overeat. Your best bet in this situation is fruits and vegetables as they are higher water content foods which also usually contain fiber.
A study done at the University of Sydney (possibly by kangaroos) tested 38 foods to find which were the most filling. The top scoring ones were those that contained protein, fiber and water including:
- Grapes
- Oranges
- Apples
- Oatmeal
- Eggs
- Cheese
Foods that cause overeating were those that were virtually devoid of water such as potato chips, refined carbohydrates, candy bars and white bread.
How Much Do I Need?
To keep this simple simply drink half your weight in ounces of water each day. That will keep you covered and hydrated. If you weigh 150 pounds, that's (pulls out calculator) 75 ounces of water a day. If you convert that to cups, it is equal to around nine. If you think that a larger size glass can hold around two cups you can see how it's not that difficult to get an adequate water intake each day.
If you haven't been drinking that much already you'll want to slowly add it in and gradually get up to your required ounces over the course of a few weeks.
So sip up and order water proudly when you're in a restaurant. And it's not my fault the water made me need a trip to the bathroom every time the check arrives.
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