You have heard a million times that you need to drink enough water. And how much water should you drink per day? Is it some universal number and rule? Here's how to know and calculate.
Whether you are looking for health or beauty advice, one will not pass you by. "Stay hydrated and drink enough water" Sparrows already know that along with the oft-mentioned goal of 8 glasses a day.
Now, does it have to be that way?
If not, how much water to drink per day?
Water is extremely important for the functioning of the organism and essential for health and beauty. The needs for it vary from person to person. And while some regularly drink the famous two liters of water a day, because that's how their body asks, there is a large group of those who remember to drink water only when they eat something very fatty and very salty. They simply do not feel the need.
Should we be guided by needs or rules?
The rule of 8 glasses of water a day is not exactly true and water intake per day depends on many other factors. But don’t worry, those rules aren’t impossible and if you’ve been drinking 8 glasses of water a day so far, you haven’t done much wrong.
Why is it important to ingest water?
Water makes up 60% of our body weight, which speaks in favor of the claim that it is an extremely important component of our body. It is very important for our survival and survival. Every cell and tissue in our body needs water to do its job optimally.
Every day we lose water from the body, through breathing, sweating, urination, and the like, and to make up for that we drink fluids.
It is important to drink enough water because it:
Helps the body maintain a normal body temperature. Without water, there is no sweating, and without sweating, in extremely hot conditions, there is no cooling of the body.
It helps to get rid of waste and toxins from the body, whether through urination, sweating, or regular bowel movements. In this way, it affects the preservation of complete health.
Protects sensitive tissues and maintains skin elasticity.
It lubricates the joints and thus affects the mobility of the body
Maximizes physical performance. Losing 2% of water during exercise can jeopardize muscle function (because they are also mostly from water) and impair physical performance.
Maximizes brain function and energy levels. Even mild dehydration can affect slower brain function, worse mood, and increase the chance of headaches.
Helps regulate body weight. Water can provide a feeling of satiety and speed up metabolism. Half a liter of water can speed up metabolism by up to 30%, but only for an hour and a half. A daily intake of 2 liters of water helps you burn 96 more calories during the day. It is best to threaten water before a meal, and even after if you are thirsty.
Finally, the role of water and its intake when we want to get rid of cellulite is not negligible. Although water alone will not dissolve cellulite lumps on your feet, it will help flush out toxins and fats faster. Read in detail about how water helps against cellulite.
How much water should I drink per day?
The required daily water intake depends on many factors. Among other things, from your age, gender, general health, daily physical activity, but also from the climate in which you live and the climatic conditions in which you are. So you have certainly threatened that when you are more physically active you have a greater need for water, as well as that you significantly increase your daily water intake when it is very hot outside.
There is no universal amount that suits all people, and therefore no universal answer to how much water to drink per day, but there is an average that you can take as a basis.
The average adult living in a temperate climate should ingest about 3.7 liters of fluid if it is for men (which is about 15 glasses a day) and 2.7 liters of fluid if it is for women (which is about 11 glasses)
Factors that affect the need to change fluid intake are:
Overall health. If you have diarrhea, if you vomit, or if your immune system has succumbed to a virus and you are suffering from a high temperature, you are losing more fluids than usual. Then you need to replenish the fluid and drink more. You should treat fluid intake in the same way if you have bladder inflammation and as a result, urinate more often.
Exercise and physical activity. The more physically active you are, the more your body sweats, that is, you lose fluid in this way. That is why it is important to drink enough water during and after exercise. If you have extra strenuous training that lasts longer than an hour, it is necessary to compensate for the electrolytes lost through sweating. In that case, sports drinks are recommended.
The environment you are in. If you are in a warm environment that causes sweating all day, you should increase your fluid intake again to allow the body to cool down naturally.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding are a special story and the body then also needs extra fluid. Pregnant women should drink at least 2.4 liters of fluid a day while breastfeeding women should drink about 13 glasses or 3.1 liters of fluid a day.
Calculate how much water you need to drink per day based on your weight
There are also more precise formulas that can determine your individual water needs depending on your age, weight, habit… Someone who is small in stature does not need the same amount, he weighs barely 45 kilograms, and someone who is 90 kilograms tall.
Here is a formula!
Measure your weight. Multiply the number of kilograms as follows over the years
if you are under 30, multiply your weight by 40
if you are 30-55 years old, multiply by 35
if you are older than 55, multiply the weight by 30
Divide the number obtained by 226.4 and you will get how many glasses of water you should drink per day.
So, a person of 70 kilograms and 32 years of age should drink 10.8 glasses of water a day.
If you practice, things change. The amount of water that should be added daily, according to the recommendation of the American College of Sports Medicine, is 350 ml for every half hour of physical effort you plan. So, if you train intensively for an hour, add 700 ml to your daily water needs.
If you do not drink enough fluids, the body has difficulty functioning. You won't notice it all at once. There are signs and symptoms that indicate that your body is lacking water in the body.
Too much water is not healthy!
Can water be overdone?
It can, although it rarely happens. Then there is prehydration, and hyponatremia (low level of sodium in the blood) can also occur. This happens because excess water dilutes the electrolytes in the blood. The symptoms are not at all naive and fatigue, headache, confusion, vomiting and nausea, muscle cramps and weakness, coma may occur.
Treatment involves reduced water intake, increased sodium intake as well as diuretic use.
So, it is important to know how much water to drink daily!
The best way to stay hydrated is to:
drink a glass of water after your meal and between meals
drink more water if you exercise and if it is hot.
drink water if you feel hungry and know you have recently eaten. In that case, water can also help you lose weight.
carry a bottle of water with you. You will remember to drink it more often than you think. You will sometimes ignore thirst if you hate to go to the water, but not when it is at hand.
Conclusion: How much water to drink per day?
Considering that we take in a lot of fluids and beyond the water itself, that both coffee and tea count, that food also has water in it - it is enough to respect your feeling of thirst when it occurs and do not delay satisfying this need. Nature has arranged these things pretty well! However, if you are aware of your mistake and still notice that you lose weight hard, that you rarely go to the toilet, as if your hair and skin look faded and lose vitality, and cellulite begins to flourish - there is no clearer sign that you need to increase intake water daily.
Water is my drug