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Drink more, stay fit!

Most people may take drinking water for granted, but keeping hydrated can have a huge impact on overall health. Despite how crucial it is that people drink enough water, a significant amount of people may be failing to drink recommended levels of fluids each day.

Your body is estimated to be about 60 to 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water, and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs. When the body does not receive a constant, reliable supply of fresh water, it has to ration what is available and cut back on certain functions in order to make the supply go round. Essential systems like the brain are prioritised, others are impaired or cut back until the brain has had its needs met. The skin, being the least important, is rationed the least amount of water. Chronically dry skin and/or dandruff are signs of advanced bodily dehydration, as are asthma and hyperventilation. Other signs of mild dehydration include chronic pains in joints and muscles, lower back pain, headaches and constipation. Constipation is a sure sign of water starvation, as the body’s intestinal peristaltic action extracts every precious drop of water from your food, to save losing it, creating gridlock. Another sure sign to the lack of water in the body is a strong odour to your urine, along with a dark yellow or amber colour indicates that you may not be getting enough water. Note that riboflavin, B vitamin, will make your urine bright yellow. Thirst is an obvious sign of dehydration and in fact, you need water long before you feel thirsty.

  • 75% of us are chronically dehydrated.
  • In 37% of us, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.
  • One glass of water deters hunger pangs for 98% of the dieters observed in a University of Washington study.
  • The biggest trigger of daytime fatigue is lack of water.
  • Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.
  • A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic maths, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.
  • Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, breast cancer by 79%, and developed bladder cancer by 50%.