stop drinking 8 cups of water (because it's "good"), and get

Bikini27

I disagree with coffee, tea, soda, etc being counted as water also as it is not plain water.

That's silly. Soda yes, it's more sugar than water, but tea and coffee are still servings of water. That's like saying seasoned chicken doesn't count as chicken.

SO...my bourbon and water still counts as water?

AnninStPaul

An article from the Huffington Post -- they have a color slideshow on their site of what color hydrated urine should be:


How Much Water Do You Really Need? What Hydration Looks Like

The Huffington Post Sarah Klein
First Posted: 02/28/2012 8:08 am Updated: 02/28/2012 12:59 pm

You hear the "rules" thrown around all the time: Drink eight glasses of water a day. Drink half your body weight in water a day. If you're already thirsty, it's too late, you're dehydrated.

And while you certainly know it's not pleasant to feel parched, staying hydrated is important for a host of other reasons. Water aids digestion, flushes out toxins, lubricates the joints and keeps your memory sharp. When you're dehydrated, your eyes, nose, mouth, skin and hair will also feel dry.

The Institue of Medicine (IOM) established some general guidelines for water intake in 2004. Healthy adult women need around 91 ounces of total water and healthy adult men need about 125 ounces every day.

But that doesn’t mean you need to chug over 11 cups of water every day. "Total" water also includes the water in other beverages -- yep, even that coffee -- as well as the water in hydrating, high-water-volume foods. About 80 percent of our daily water intake comes from beverages, and the remaining 20 percent comes from the foods we eat.

There are some situations in which you'll want to throw a few extra ounces back: Hot, humid weather causes us to lose more water from sweat, and if you're sick with a fever or vomiting you'll be losing extra liquids too. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding also require extra water, as do athletes or exercisers who lose extra water from sweat, according to Mayo Clinic.

It's true that thirst is a symptom of dehydration, so try to remember to sip fluids throughout the day. But don't overdo it: It is possible to drink too much water, which, frighteningly, can kill you.

One way to keep on top of your hydration is to keep an eye on the color of your urine. Lawrence Armstrong, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist and professor at the University of Connecticut's Human Performance Laboratory, established a urine color chart to accurately depict levels of dehydration. While Armstrong does not allow online reproduction of the chart, as the colors may appear differently on different computer monitors, color printers and web sites, numerous other outlets, including the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, the New York Times and the Boy Scouts of America have since created their own digital versions of the color chart.

The slideshow below is based on the colors presented by the Boy Scouts of America. The goal is to produce urine the color of lemonade, ideally in the range of colors one through three. If your urine is in the range of colors four through eight, you need to drink more fluids and may need to consult your doctor. (Note: This slideshow is not for clinical use, but can be used as a basic guideline.)

Keep in mind that other things can temporarily change the color of your urine, including some medications, beets, blackberries and artificial coloring in foods, according to MedlinePlus. Vitamins and supplements are also likely to have an affect, often producing urine that is bright yellow, mimicking the colors indicative of dehydration in the slideshow below.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/28/how-much-water-urine-color-chart_n_1305129.html?view=screen

BerryH

I know two runners, one the son of a friend of mine, who collapsed into a coma and nearly died through hyponatremia or water intoxication, so it may not be super common but it's very real, happens to fit people and is very, very dangerous.

Your body doesn't care where it gets the H2O molecules from - so long as your urine's a pale straw colour you're not dehydrated.

Caffeine is not a diuretic and will not dehydrate you. I know many runners who kick off a long run with an espresso. Alcohol, however, is the devil as far as dehydration goes, as anyone who has tried to exercise off a hangover will be able to attest.

meg7399

I love the amount of people who say "well it makes me feel better so I am going to do it" Well a few shots of vodka after work followed by a long drag on a cig makes me FEEL better but I don't do it!

hottottie11

I'm glad I'm not the only feeling I need to drink tons of water. I prefer tea, black coffee and diet sodas over water. I really only drink water when I work out.

mslindsay

I will say that many times when I felt hungry and it really wasn't time to eat, didn't have the calories left, I found that if I drank a glass of water, the feeling went completely away and if it DIDN'T, THEN I ate something......sometimes we really are thirsty and we've lost the ability to recognize it and start eating instead......I drink about 8 glasses of liquid whether I am eating healthy or not....I'm just thirsty

I agree with this! I started drinking half my body weight in water, (10 - 20 cups) and lost 20 pounds without counting my calories or excerising. It was because drinking more water helped me with hunger, and boredom/emotional eating. Now I am trying to watch what I eat and get my body moving, I still love my water.

Purple_Orchid_87

Finally, someone else who knows the truth. There is no evidence drinking 8 cups of water does anything to loose weight.

my sodium levels were through the roof, and drinking more water helps to dilute the sodium in my blood and kidneys
now i am not a medically qualified doctor, unlike the numerous people I have had any appointments with - but hey, what would they know, they only go through 8 years of qualifications, and then a couple to specialise in what they do

jenniebean1680

I cannot believe this thread is still going.

jennifermcornett

Good lord this thread is stupid.

I concur.

amy4586

while i agree that the 8 glasses of water is misleading, some ppl do need to hydrate often for medical issues (kidney stones). I have that issue and I'm supposed to drink 2 liters of water a day.

Also- another trick I learned from a diatician: According to her there was a study done on why some ppl do not feel thirtsy. i was the worst offender. I could eaily go all day with nothing to drink except at dinner. I would never feel thristy, so I always forgot to hydrate. However i was hungry all the time, even after I ate. According to this study some ppl feel thirst as hunger. She said the best way to test the theory is if u feel hungry, and u ate recently, drink a glass of water. If you feel better you were thirtsy not hungry. I tried it and that is me. I never feel the urge to drink. But now, I make it a point to carry water with me all day and drink, drink drink.

Hopefully that helps some users.

2fit4fat

No one will ever get me to believe that drinking plenty of plain water is not good for you. And in order to drink too much, you have to drink a LOT or drink quite a bit in a short amount of time.

If we drank more than the kidneys can handle over a day's time then we wouldn't eat. There is nothing wrong with drinking 10 or 12 cups of water.

I disagree with coffee, tea, soda, etc being counted as water also as it is not plain water.

Most people that increase their water intake find they have more energy, better moods, clearer skin and better digestion and elimination.

Water is important to the human body.

yep this 100% plus im able to stay in my cals WAY easier (i didnt drink water yesterday and went over my cals and with worse foods)

Bikini27

I cannot believe this thread is still going.

Nobody has been rude enough for it to be locked and deleted.
That is the answer to killing threads.

ATT949

how the heck is drinking 8 cups of water a day bad for you?! :noway:

Well, all us people on here who drink 8 cups of water would be reallly unhealthy then by now wont we?! When infact we are all lots of pounds lighter!

Oh you make me laugh!

It's probably not bad for you (I've never seen any research that shows that it is) but in the medical community, their beliefs run contrary to many "truths" stated here.

I'm not saying that you shouldn't drink water - diet sites and clinics recommend water for what I'd expect are good reasons reasons, one of which is that when you chug water, you feel full. That helps lose weight and that's the goal, right?

Another, as I was reading last night, is that putting a coffee cup, tea cup, or water glass in your hand cuts down on the chances that you'll eat something.

I'd bet that drinking extra water will also, temporarily, remove some wrinkles. However, your body will do everything it can to get rid of the unneeded water so, when you cut back on your water intake, that will revert to your skins' natural state.

Insofar as drinking water to "flush toxins", "clean out the body", I've never seen medical evidence about that, either, but folks like the idea so, why not?

Snopes seems to think that you don't need to drink a whole buncha water (that's a technical term).

http://www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp

But Snopes isn't medically based and, when I read postings here, I'm sure there are folks here who are much, much more knowledgeable than I am, so I look to the advice of experts. Here's a link to an interesting article. Much of what is posted here is what people have observed and deduced and I have no doubt about their validity. In addition to anecdotes, I like articles that have footnotes and citations because they are helpful to establish veracity.

The article at these links are authored by a Darmouth MD and his research assistant. The good doctor happens to have written a textbook on how the kidneys function so that makes me suspect he knows an awful lot more about water and its impact on the human body than the folks on this site.


http://www.dartmouth.edu/~news/releases/2002/aug/080802.html

http://ajpregu.physiology.org/content/283/5/R993.full

Again, there's nothing wrong with drinking "extra water" (as long as you don't drink enough to case hyponatremia) but, as far as I can tell, the medical community has never found a need for it.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

I disagree with coffee, tea, soda, etc being counted as water also as it is not plain water.

That's silly. Soda yes, it's more sugar than water, but tea and coffee are still servings of water. That's like saying seasoned chicken doesn't count as chicken.

How is it silly? Tea and coffee are not PLAIN water. They contain caffeine, which is a diuretic. My mom's nephrologist always told her to drink 1 glass of water for every cup of coffee or tea she drank, yet she never did and always felt terrible.

And how many people do you know that drink straight black coffee or tea? Most people load it up with sugar, sweeteners, cream, fake creamers, etc.............That is not water.

I don't even count water kefir as plain water. I treat it as a snack.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

People who post on these forums and have no educational background except a single google search really need to be careful about the advice they give. Please people do your own research... and no don't just stop at google. Dig deeper. Check your resources. You can make yourself very sick if you follow the wrong advice.
The "Drinking when you're thirsty" comment is just flat out wrong. Nutritional scientists will tell you that need lags behind thirst. You need more water than you crave. This is fact. If you are exercising you are almost certainly in a dehydrated state. Ask any professional athelete who is serious about performance and they can tell you about hydration. Water consumption has EVERYTHING to do with digestion. It has EVERYTHING to do with your health and it has EVERYTHING to do with weightloss. Take a class, read a book, ask someone other than google for legit information.

Thank You................I have been educating myself for years, the more I learn.........the more I evolve.

I see people on this website complaining about dry and itchy skin, constipation issues and other digestive issues, skin breaking out, etc............if half of these people would increase both their water and fat intakes the majority of these issues would go away.


Also, to those of you that say I get water from the foods I eat......... How many of you are eating that many vegetables and fruit for it to really count as part of your fluid intake?

I would tend to believe people saying this from those that eat a very heavy plant based lifestyle, but not people eating the SAD (Standard American Diet).

PaleoPath4Lyfe

I agree with NatureMade. My skin definitely looks better than it did a few weeks ago and I just feel better.

Me too, since I have increase my intake, 64 fl oz ...my skin is clear, I haven't had any cramps in my feet and elbows (weird right)...and i have energy..OH and my pee isn't all dark and nasty looking!!!
I even suggested it to my son,,,,and his face has gotten better (acne) so...............
YAY WATER!!!!

:drinker:

runningdiva77

i drink 16 cups of water a day- and it has kept my body weight at bay, and keep me from eating too much

sjschewlakow

I'm glad I'm not the only feeling I need to drink tons of water. I prefer tea, black coffee and diet sodas over water. I really only drink water when I work out.

Totally agree.

RillSoji

Water is important to the human body.

Agreed! Also, if I'm drinking water, I'm not drinking something else. Something else with calories or sugar or fake sugar or dyes or caffeine.....all that stuff that's been a hindrance to *my weight loss. So....water it is for me.


*My, as in mine. Not yours. ;P

maxmariesfo

Do you need to drink 8 glasses of water a day? No, not really.

Will 8 glasses of water a day hurt you? No, not in the least.

Yes, it can. It flushes your water soluable vitamins out of your system. People remember to take potassium after exercise but not after drinking mass quantities of water.

The media has us convinced that high cholesterol is the reason for heart attacks in our country. But the American Heart Association says that only **2** percent of heart attack victims have high cholesterol. Cholesterol in Italy is far higher than ours. Yet, their heart attack rate is about a quarter ours.

Lack of potassium short circuits the body electric -leading to heart attack and stroke.

Also - your B vitamins are water soluable. I've said it before here, there once was a time when meat eaters thumbed their noses at vegetarians for lack of B12 in the vegetarian diet. B12 is a bacteria. Today all the antibiotics used in factory farmed meats kills off the B12. What isn't killed off is flushed out by massive amounts of unneeded water.

What is the result of lack of B vitamins? Neurological disorders. Lack of B vitamins in our current diet is thought to be responsible for the epidemic of misdiagnoses in Parkinsons and MS.

Wake up people!

We Americans are so greedy for water we are buying it from third world countries causing draughts in tiny villages.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponatremia

Loseweight1980

So, buying water from somewhere doesn't cause a draught, dude, lack of rain does.

maxmariesfo

So, buying water from somewhere doesn't cause a draught, dude, lack of rain does.

It does when you drain the entire lake. dude.

amyhollar

Stating that drinking 8 cups of water a day will flush the water soluble vitamins you need out of your body is one of the most absurd things I've read in these forums. Ridiculous.

butterfliespink

"Yes, it can. It flushes your water soluable vitamins out of your system. People remember to take potassium after exercise but not after drinking mass quantities of water. "

Then take a multivitamin. Sheesh.

AlbionLass

I just keep an eye on the colour of my urine to guage my level of hydration, I get my liquid all kinds of ways, mainly coffee most days if I'm honest but water, tea of all kinds, milk, diet Cola...Bacardi lol.

Bikini27

We Americans are so greedy for water we are buying it from third world countries causing draughts in tiny villages.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponatremia

Bless your heart :flowerforyou:

Evelyn_Gorfram

(Okay, people who live in glass spell-checkers shouldn't thrwo typos. But I just couldn't hepl myself.)

We Americans are so greedy for water we are buying it from third world countries causing draughts in tiny villages.

Ref: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/draughts

Holy cow! We're causing people in tiny third world villages to play checkers! Heavens to Betsy!

What's next? We'll be creating small currents of air in their huts and other enclosed spaces? (We won't them draw up blueprints & techincal drawings will we? That would be just too horrible.)

Especially when so many of those places are already suffering such terrible droughts.

Bikini27

(Okay, people who live in glass spell-checkers shouldn't thrwo typos. But I just couldn't hepl myself.)

We Americans are so greedy for water we are buying it from third world countries causing draughts in tiny villages.

Ref: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/draughts

Holy cow! We're causing people in tiny third world villages to play checkers! Heavens to Betsy!

What's next? We'll be creating small currents of air in their huts and other enclosed spaces? (We won't them draw up blueprints & techincal drawings will we? That would be just too horrible.)

Especially when so many of those places are already suffering such terrible droughts.

I love you.

sizzle92

My body NEEDS water. I feel like crap when I don't drink enough. You can go days and days without food.....but the same is not true about water. What does that tell you??

sunnyday789

People who post on these forums and have no educational background except a single google search really need to be careful about the advice they give. Please people do your own research... and no don't just stop at google. Dig deeper. Check your resources. You can make yourself very sick if you follow the wrong advice.
The "Drinking when you're thirsty" comment is just flat out wrong. Nutritional scientists will tell you that need lags behind thirst. You need more water than you crave. This is fact. If you are exercising you are almost certainly in a dehydrated state. Ask any professional athelete who is serious about performance and they can tell you about hydration. Water consumption has EVERYTHING to do with digestion. It has EVERYTHING to do with your health and it has EVERYTHING to do with weightloss. Take a class, read a book, ask someone other than google for legit information.

Thank You................I have been educating myself for years, the more I learn.........the more I evolve.

I see people on this website complaining about dry and itchy skin, constipation issues and other digestive issues, skin breaking out, etc............if half of these people would increase both their water and fat intakes the majority of these issues would go away.


Also, to those of you that say I get water from the foods I eat......... How many of you are eating that many vegetables and fruit for it to really count as part of your fluid intake?

I would tend to believe people saying this from those that eat a very heavy plant based lifestyle, but not people eating the SAD (Standard American Diet).

I don't have dry itchy skin, constipation, or digestive issues. I do get at least 8 cups of water, just some of my water has caffeine in it. There are studies involving tens of thousands of people showing that coffee significantly reduces risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

As I've said before, infants are able to stay hydrated and grow despite having very littlle if any plain water.This is because our bodies are capable of extracting water from just about any fluid.

I can agree that not all sources that are on Google are accurate; however many websites are considered reputable sources. I'm aware that you do not think that these sources are reliable,but not sure why you think that the "research" you do is considered superior.

Just because something is written in a book doesn't make it more true that if it's on a website.

And once more, the OP clearly stated if you like drinking 8 glasses of plain H2O (or more) if it helps you lose weight, great:flowerforyou: . It's just not really neccssary for it to be plain water to hydrate.