What do you count as 'water'?

135

Replies

  • beyondjupiter
    beyondjupiter Posts: 247 Member
    I understand that the whole 8 glasses of water thing has been debunked but you still need water. If I was to drink enough juice to stay hydrated I'd be drinking a lot of calories and sugar daily. I drink coffee and the almond milk in my cereal or smoothie but that is it other than water. I have the occasional juice. I don't think anything else should be counted as water. I use the tracker because I think it is important to get enough water. I notice a lot of other drinks leave me feeling thirsty as others have mentioned. Back in the day I would drink 8-10 cans of soda a day and maybe some milk or coffee here or there. My urine was always dark which, if I am correct, means you are dehydrated.
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
    All sources of moisture count as water. That includes food, too. The 8 glasses a day has been debunked for a long time. When you are thirsty, drink something. Hungry, try drinking something first to make sure you aren't mistaking thirst for hunger.

    Powdered Crystal Light does not magically transform water into something else. It's still water. The only scientific studies I have found that say not to count a drink has been if it's alcoholic or caffinated. Other than that, juice, flavored waters.....all good.
  • Katerbels
    Katerbels Posts: 106 Member
    I actually count almost all my liquids in as water (I don't really drink alcohol, so I never thought about it), but I'm also careful to try to drink as much plain boring water as I can. But, that's mainly because A) back when I was doing Weight Watchers, they told us to drink at least half of our water intake as actual water and B) because a few weeks ago at my regular checkup my Dr. told me I was dehydrated and needed to drink more actual water, so now I do.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    I only count pizza as water, and only if it's pepperoni. Sausage pizza definitely does not count as water.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    All sources of moisture count as water. That includes food, too. The 8 glasses a day has been debunked for a long time. When you are thirsty, drink something. Hungry, try drinking something first to make sure you aren't mistaking thirst for hunger.

    Powdered Crystal Light does not magically transform water into something else. It's still water. The only scientific studies I have found that say not to count a drink has been if it's alcoholic or caffinated. Other than that, juice, flavored waters.....all good.

    Caffeinated is fine also - plus beer and wine is.

    http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/water/NU00283 - any beverage counts

    "beverages such as milk and juice are composed mostly of water. Even beer, wine and caffeinated beverages — such as coffee, tea or soda — can contribute"

    "What you eat also provides a significant portion of your fluid needs. On average, food provides about 20 percent of total water intake."


    http://www.jacn.org/content/19/5/591.short - any beverage counts

    "This preliminary study found no significant differences in the effect of various combinations of beverages on hydration status of healthy adult males. Advising people to disregard caffeinated beverages as part of the daily fluid intake is not substantiated by the results of this study."


    http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/12834577 - the diuretic effect of caffeine is minimal

    "...nor does it cause significant dehydration or electrolyte imbalance during exercise."


    http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/12187618 - the diuretic effect of caffeine is minimal

    "The literature indicates that caffeine consumption stimulates a mild diuresis similar to water, but there is no evidence of a fluid-electrolyte imbalance that is detrimental to exercise performance or health"

    "Investigations comparing caffeine (100-680 mg) to water or placebo seldom found a statistical difference in urine volume."


    http://jap.physiology.org/content/83/4/1152.abstract? - interesting one about alcohol post exercise and recovery

    “There appears to be no difference in recovery from dehydration whether the rehydration beverage is alcohol free or contains up to 2% alcohol, but drinks containing 4% alcohol tend to delay the recovery process.”
  • StevLL
    StevLL Posts: 921 Member
    I count water as water. I normally drink between 8-16 cups a day, plus 8-12 cups of coffee. I dont really track anything else unless it has calories then I'll track it.
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
    I understand that the whole 8 glasses of water thing has been debunked but you still need water. If I was to drink enough juice to stay hydrated I'd be drinking a lot of calories and sugar daily. I drink coffee and the almond milk in my cereal or smoothie but that is it. I have the occasional juice. I don't think anything else should be counted as water. I use the tracker because I think it is important to get enough water. I notice a lot of other drinks leave me feeling thirsty as others have mentioned. Back in the day I would drink 8-10 cans of soda a day and maybe some milk or coffee here or there. My urine was always dark which, if I am correct, means you are dehydrated.

    Dark urine does not necessarily mean you are dehydrated. There are many water soluable vitamins that change the color of your urine. Have you ever taken a B-Complex vitamin? Within an hour or two, your urine is extremely dark. B vitamins are water soluable. Dark leafy greens will also do that to you.

    Drinking excessively leads to water soluable vitamin deficiencies, and is taxing on the kidneys. Depending on your diet, if you keep a very low sodium profile, excessive water can lead to Hypovolemic hyponatremia:

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

    And way too much water can lead to water poisoning:

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

    Society tends to think "more is better"....it doesn't. Yes, hydration is important. Water is important. But if you are peeing every 15-20 minutes that means your body is using NOTHING. It's had it's fill and all you are doing is peeing out important essential nutrients.
  • beyondjupiter
    beyondjupiter Posts: 247 Member
    Dark urine does not necessarily mean you are dehydrated. There are many water soluable vitamins that change the color of your urine. Have you ever taken a B-Complex vitamin?

    Thanks for the info. I do take one now but I was not taking one then. I have many lab techs and doctors comment on the color of my urine and say that I was dehydrated. I was literally drinking no water at that point other than maybe what I got in food, which wasn't much I'm sure. I don't think you can drink all soda, some juice, and some milk and stay hydrated. While there are for sure other issues that cause dark urine, dehydration would be the most common.

    I drink 8-12 glasses a day so around 64-96 oz a day, plus coffee. I definitely don't pee every 15-20 minutes LOL.
  • Otterluv
    Otterluv Posts: 9,083 Member
    I don't count water because I believe it's almost entirely meaningless.

    That said, I don't believe making a solution with water changes the chemical properties of the water. Unless what you're doing to the water is separating a couple of H's from an O, then your body will still know what to do with it. It seems that some people would have you believe that water you drink with a meal wouldn't count as water because the food would dissolve with it in your stomach.

    ^^^^^^^^^^^^ QFT

    Let's not overthink this, folks.
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
    http://www.dartmouth.edu/~news/releases/2002/aug/080802.html

    Adapted from this link:

    * Thirst Is Too Late. It is often stated that by the time people are thirsty, they are already dehydrated. On the contrary, thirst begins when the concentration of blood (an accurate indicator of our state of hydration) has risen by less than two percent, whereas most experts would define dehydration as beginning when that concentration has risen by at least five percent.

    * Dark Urine Means Dehydration. At normal urinary volume and color, the concentration of the blood is within the normal range and nowhere near the values that are seen in meaningful dehydration. Therefore, the warning that dark urine reflects dehydration is alarmist and false in most instances.

    Medical article explaining various commonly held thoughts about water:

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


    Dr. Noakes wrote a book about the dangers of overhydration in endurance sports:

    http://www.outsideonline.com/blog/outdoor-adventure/tim-noakes-on-the-serious-problem-of-overhydration-in-endurance-sports.html
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
    @Sarauk2sf

    I mentioned alcoholic and caffeinated drinks based on my research. The National Library of Medicine / National Institutes of Health state that alcoholic beverages should not be counted because they draw water out of the body. (Ever have too much to drink and you pee a river? It's not just the beer) The #1 cure for a hangover? Drinking tons of water. A hangover is essentially too much water pulled out the brain. That's why your head hurts the morning after. Your brain is literally dehydrated:

    http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-a-hangover.htm

    Alcohol and caffeine are diuretics....meaning they draw water OUT of your body. Which is why scientists prefer not to count them towards water sources:

    http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002471.htm
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    @Sarauk2sf

    I mentioned alcoholic and caffeinated drinks based on my research. The National Library of Medicine / National Institutes of Health state that alcoholic beverages should not be counted because they draw water out of the body. (Ever have too much to drink and you pee a river? It's not just the beer) The #1 cure for a hangover? Drinking tons of water. A hangover is essentially too much water pulled out the brain. That's why your head hurts the morning after. Your brain is literally dehydrated:

    http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-a-hangover.htm

    Alcohol and caffeine are diuretics....meaning they draw water OUT of your body. Which is why scientists prefer not to count them towards water sources:

    http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002471.htm

    Seems to conflict with all the studies I cited.
  • Snow3y
    Snow3y Posts: 1,412 Member
    water.
  • littlelady2b
    littlelady2b Posts: 104
    This was actually one of the questions on my final in my dietetic class this past semester. The general rule of thumb is to count all juices, coffees and teas, caffeinated or decaffeinated, with your water count. You, of course, still need to account for the added calories in these liquids.

    I agree with you everything you drink counts as your fluid intake for the day fruit juices obviously have to also be put in your calories because they are also a fruit. Water consumption is to help the body stay hydrated but also assists in reducing water retention. Caffeine on the other hand is different and can actually contribute to dehydration so you end up drinking more to replace what the caffeine has caused you to lose.

    "Consuming caffeine--particularly in non-liquid forms such as chocolate--can contribute to water loss and dehydration. Because caffeine is a diuretic, it increases urination and forces your body to excrete more water than normal, Brown University Health Education explains. Although caffeinated beverages like coffee and soft drinks replenish some of the water your body loses, dehydration can still occur if you are exercising, sweating excessively or consuming few additional liquids in your diet. For every cup of coffee you drink during the day, Brown University Health Education recommends consuming 8 oz. of water to replace lost fluids and prevent dehydration." Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/139185-the-effects-caffeine-human-body/#ixzz2TnzluJs3
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member

    Seems to conflict with all the studies I cited.

    Yes it does. Seems we're at an impasse. :smile:
  • susanswan
    susanswan Posts: 1,194 Member
    Water and iced tea. Anything with a chemical is a liquid in my book and not water. Tea is pushing it but mine are herbal.
  • Nicolee_2014
    Nicolee_2014 Posts: 1,572 Member
    I count water as water. I drink enough of it that I don't need to factor in coffee's etc.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member

    Seems to conflict with all the studies I cited.

    Yes it does. Seems we're at an impasse. :smile:

    :happy:

    ETA: they may be conflicting as they are dose dependent as well as tolerance dependent re the caffeine - I am not sure what doses are used in the article you linked as the study is not cited..

    The alcohol article is a little confusing as it seems to be blaming toxins for hangovers not the alcohol itself:

    "Pure alcohol or ethanol is supposedly toxin-free. Experts say that toxins present in the additives of drinks do the harm. There are many poisons and chemicals in alcoholic drinks that produce these toxins. Wine has a very large amount of additives, while pure vodka has relatively little. Many people attest that drinking pure vodka will not produce a hangover, while drinking wines causes some of the worst symptoms."
  • cmcis
    cmcis Posts: 300 Member
    This was actually one of the questions on my final in my dietetic class this past semester. The general rule of thumb is to count all juices, coffees and teas, caffeinated or decaffeinated, with your water count. You, of course, still need to account for the added calories in these liquids.

    Years ago I decided I never really felt hydrated when I drank juice by itself, even a large amount of fresh juice, so I would drink water before having it. I find that with things like soy milk and almond milk too. If I was already thirsty these things did not make me feel less thirsty. That is just me though.

    It is not just you.

    If I have anything other than water, I feel more thirsty, not less. Mostly because of the sugar content, I believe. I get dry mouth and feel like I am dying of thirst after having a Coke or something similar. The water in it might hydrate you, but the other ingredients surely don't.

    But like I said before, I don't count water anyway. I just drink the stuff to the point of hydration and don't worry about it beyond that.

    Same here. It was only until I started drinking water on a regular basis that I noticed the difference though.
  • Markguns
    Markguns Posts: 554 Member
    Water and iced tea. Anything with a chemical is a liquid in my book and not water. Tea is pushing it but mine are herbal.

    Why? It's mostly water.....
  • raccy25
    raccy25 Posts: 7
    I count water I get myself out of the tap and bottled mineral water as water, but on the "8 glasses a day" tracker I also include any drinks I make myself with water eg. Sugar free squash, tea, coffee etc. but I log the extra calories from the added items in my diary. I wouldn't however count fruit juice or any fizzy drinks as water, as I haven't directly put the water in them. I'd just log them as usual in my diary and they wouldn't count towards my "8 glasses a day". Fizzy drinks contain too many artificial sugars/sweeteners to be classed as healthy as 1 of your "8 a day" in my opinion.
  • raccy25
    raccy25 Posts: 7
    I only count pizza as water, and only if it's pepperoni. Sausage pizza definitely does not count as water.
    :laugh:
  • laurynwithawhy
    laurynwithawhy Posts: 385 Member
    Okay. It's called water for a reason. That little ticker that lets you track your water intake says "WATER". Not liquids. Not fluids. Not flavored beverages. Not alcohol. Not diet coke. Not reconstituted condensed soup. It says water. Guess what counts as water? Water. The end. If it has any ingredients besides H2O it's NOT water and personally, I don't think should be counted.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    Okay. It's called water for a reason. That little ticker that lets you track your water intake says "WATER". Not liquids. Not fluids. Not flavored beverages. Not alcohol. Not diet coke. Not reconstituted condensed soup. It says water. Guess what counts as water? Water. The end. If it has any ingredients besides H2O it's NOT water and personally, I don't think should be counted.
    The water you count as water has ingredients other than H2O.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
    I don't see the point in tracking water. There are plenty of other, more important, things to track and stress over.

    This. But just about anything liquid can be counted as water.
  • xeyda
    xeyda Posts: 7
    I only count pure, plain water, or water with fresh squeezed lemon (no sweetener) as "water", but I do not beat myself up over it if I do not drink a set number of ounces, because I do drink coffee, tea, the occasional diet soda, juice, etc. Plus I eat a lot of fruit, which adds up for hydration.
  • SilverLotusGirl
    SilverLotusGirl Posts: 537 Member
    I will count water and herbal teas as water. I sometimes count green tea as water but I'm a bit iffy on that one due to the caffeine. If I add things like crystal light or Mio I don't count it as water. I also don't count milk, juice, soda, or anything like that either. I count the calories or everything and I list the non water drinks that I drink. This is just how I keep track of things.
  • CongoClark81
    CongoClark81 Posts: 95 Member
    I only count water as water. Anything added to it, Crystal Light or whatever, I don't count as water and include that in my calorie tracker. So just strictly count water as water, nothing more
  • CongoClark81
    CongoClark81 Posts: 95 Member
    Okay. It's called water for a reason. That little ticker that lets you track your water intake says "WATER". Not liquids. Not fluids. Not flavored beverages. Not alcohol. Not diet coke. Not reconstituted condensed soup. It says water. Guess what counts as water? Water. The end. If it has any ingredients besides H2O it's NOT water and personally, I don't think should be counted.
    Totally agree!
  • tdfarmer
    tdfarmer Posts: 176 Member
    I only count water, and here is why, when I started I drank very little water, was drinking pretty according to everyone standards of counting anything, even diet. One of my friends encouraged me to start drinking water. So forced myself to stop drinking everything else and drink mainly water. Since I've done that have seen major changes in my weight. Now mind you I do drink other things now, but I do log as calories and not water, but still try to drink a minimum of 64oz of water a day.

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