Drinking the right amount of water daily is one of those health tips everyone agrees on. You won’t find contrarians telling you that drinking enough water is actually harmful to your health.While just about everyone knows that drinking water is a good thing, not as many people may know about the right amount to consume.
Learn more about how much water you should be drinking every day after going through this article. With that knowledge in hand, you can also tweak your habits to ensure that you are always properly hydrated.
How Much Should You Drink Every Day?
Let’s get to the main topic right away.
According to The United States National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, adequate daily water consumption is 3.7 liters for men and 2.7 liters for women. That comes out to about 15.5 cups of water daily for men and 11.5 cups of water for women.
Notably, the recommended daily water intake accounts for more than just the actual glasses of water that you should drink per day. If you drink coffee, tea or some other beverage regularly, that should be included in your daily water intake, too.
The foods we eat also contain fluids. That means they also count toward your daily fluid intake.
Of course, those amounts are simply recommendations. You don’t have to meticulously measure your fluid intake to ensure you hit 3.7 liters or 2.7 liters right on the dot.
That’s especially true since the amount of water you need to stay hydrated can change from one day to the next.
Factors That Affect Your Water Intake Needs
Factors both in and out of your control can affect how much water you’ll need to remain adequately hydrated.
For instance, drinking more water than normal may be necessary if you just had an intense workout. You should also consider upping your fluid intake if you have a condition that causes diarrhea. In either case, drinking more water is important because you need to compensate for the fluids you’re losing.
You should also increase your water consumption if you’re experiencing an unseasonably warm day. Drinking more water is one of the things you can do to prevent heatstroke.
What Are the Health Benefits of Water?
What exactly does water do for the human body? Simply put, it does a lot of good.
By drinking a sufficient amount of water every day, you:
- Improve your digestion
- Expel waste faster
- Keep your heartbeat stable
- Maintain a normal body temperature
- Protect different tissues and joints
How Do I Know If I’m Drinking Enough?
It’s pretty easy to tell if you’re drinking enough water daily.
Examining your urine helps with that. If your urine is clear or at least pale yellow, then you are properly hydrated. Start drinking some more water if your urine has a more prominent yellow color.
Pinching the skin on the back of your hand can also help you determine if you’re adequately hydrated. You should pinch your skin, let it go, then watch how it reverts to its original position. If it reverts to its original position quickly, then you are getting enough water.
Lastly, you also shouldn’t feel thirsty often if you’re hydrating properly. Go ahead and drink more water until you don’t have that problem anymore.
Drinking the right amount of water every day is one of the healthiest habits you can adopt. Make sure you always have a supply of clean drinking water at home so you can enjoy all of its benefits.