For such asimple habit, drinking water has caused us far more than its fair share ofconcern. How much do you really need? And how can you make sure you're gettingenough? Well, not to burst your bubble, but you can start by forgetting thatwhole eight glasses thing.
As we've written before, that rule aboutdrinking eight glasses of water every day isn't actually based on scientificevidence. In fact, in 2007, the BMJ dubbed it one of the most common medicalmyths.
But that doesn't mean you can forgetabout your daily water needs altogether. As the Mayo Clinic explains, your bodyloses water every day as you sweat, pee, and breathe - and it all needs to bereplaced. If it doesn't, you're looking at potential dehydration, which caneither be annoying: On the less serious end, you might have a headache, drymouth, and dark urine without enough water. But, as you become more dehydrated,you can develop a rapid heart rate, rapid breathing, confusion, andlightheadedness.
So, yeah, it's definitely important tomake sure you're getting enough water. But the exact amount of water that weeach lose and need to replenish isn't as simple to figure out. As it turns out,that daily requirement is going to be pretty different for everyone dependingon all sorts of factors. For instance, the amount of water you need to drinkevery day will go up if you regularly work out, live in a warm or humid city,have been dealing with a cold, or are pregnant, says the Mayo Clinic. Accordingto this, it’s necessary for us to take a collapsible bottle every day,we must supplement water if we need, so eight glasses of water everyday ruleusually does not work at this time.
As a startingpoint, the National Institute of Medicine recommends women consume 91 ounces ofwater per day (which, truthfully, isn't that far off from the eight glassesthing). But it's crucial that you adjust that guideline to take the rest ofyour lifestyle into account. And, luckily, nature has gifted us with a fewclues about when we need to drink more or less water: In general, you should befine as long as you drink when you're thirsty and keep your urine on thelighter side (no, it doesn't have to be clear).
