The Importance of Water Consumption for Your Everyday Health
How many glasses of water do you drink in a day?
Until a couple of months ago, I usually only drank 1-2 glasses per day. I rarely felt thirsty, and when I did, I would have a sip of water and then go along my merry way.
Well, I’ve had a BIG revelation over the last couple of months and am here to give you a sneak peak into the topic of H20. But know…I’m only skimming the surface! I’ll be sure to share more as I dig further. In short though, water is a beautiful tool, that we have easy access to, and don’t take near enough advantage of. So hang tight and get ready to be intrigued.
Body Makeup
Did you know when you were born your body was made up of around 75% water. As we grow older that percentage decreases to approximately 60%. You might be asking, how is that possible when we are solid. Well first..speak for yourself. I’m a little squishy around the edges. But second, it is because 3/4 of the water inside us is being held within 70+ trillion cells! You heard that right, 70+ TRILLION! 70% of your organs are made up of water. Plasma is 92% water. Your brain is 85% water. Your nervous system is 90% water. The list goes on and on! Crazy to think about right?
Water is the vehicle of choice for our bodies to transport every nutrient and debris.
A great example is with our white blood cells. Water carries toxic substances and carcinogens to our lymph nodes to be destroyed.
Another great example is how water carries debris past our cell membranes, to our liver and kidneys to be filtered. From there it is then taken by, you guessed it…water, out of the body through urine.
Average Adult
So you might be thinking, why should I care. What if I told you that your body does not store water? It is essential for proper cell and organ function and you don’t have excess of it held within you. That you lose about 3 quarts per day on average - 1.5 quarts through urine and more through perspiration.
Water is one of the most, if not the most vital component we need, and 4/5’s of adults do not drink enough on a daily basis. 7% of adults drink 0 cups of water per day and over a third of adults only drink 1-3 cups per day. I was one of them! But not any more! After learning that low levels of dehydration can cause higher risk of infection, and that water keeps our discs from grinding and our joints from rubbing, I have decided to make a change!
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Recommended Consumption Amount
There are a lot of differing suggestions on what is the correct amount of water to consume each day. Darin Olien, author of the book SuperLife, recommends 3-4 liters per day, while others suggest drinking 1 oz of H20 for every 2 lbs you weigh. In general, just remember more is better. The benefits are endless and your body will thank you.
Until next time…cheers!
Jen
Please note - I am not a licensed dietician. These tidbits are from health documentaries and books I have read. If you’re interested in reading more I would highly recommend Daren Olien’s book that I have linked above and is available on Amazon.
