8 cups Really!!!

mwcraig34
mwcraig34 Posts: 359 Member
edited December 19 in Chit-Chat
I started reading up about the required 8 cups of water a day. I have come to discover that this is not a medical or scientific theory. I know everyone with be jumping on me like gang busters, but sorry I haven't found any proof that 8 cups is the minimum amount of water a health person should consume. I do know that I drink my 8-10 cups everyday but i'm starting to wonder why? So i can go pee a lot? Some one find documentation that says other wise! Oh just a few websites!

http://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/HEALTHbeat_091405.htm

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

http://shine.yahoo.com/summer-time-fun/do-you-really-need-8-glasses-of-water-a-day-2512002.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=eight-glasses-water-per-day

Replies

  • mwcraig34
    mwcraig34 Posts: 359 Member
    bump!
    :bigsmile:
  • nray3119
    nray3119 Posts: 100 Member
    hmmm, I dont know where that came from. I try to drink as much as I can, but its not always 8 cups.
  • ArtGeek22
    ArtGeek22 Posts: 1,429 Member
    I just try to aim for 8 cups of water a day because I find I am more energetic and don't get headaches if I at least drink that amount. I am assuming it is because I am simply staying hydrated :smile:
  • mwcraig34
    mwcraig34 Posts: 359 Member
    I just try to aim for 8 cups of water a day because I find I am more energetic and don't get headaches if I at least drink that amount. I am assuming it is because I am simply staying hydrated :smile:

    But according to the websites I posted we dont need that much water! That your most likely are not dehydrated!
  • interceptor311
    interceptor311 Posts: 980 Member
    I can't. I usually drink about 6.
  • Pengi81
    Pengi81 Posts: 336 Member
    I can't manage 8 cups a day, I seem to have a bladder the size of a cashew nut as I'm up and down to the loo at work at lot, 8 cups would finish me, I'd be spending the entire day in the bathroom!
  • Drenched_N_Motivation
    Drenched_N_Motivation Posts: 1,004 Member
    Its half a gallon. Big deal. Some days i drink a gallon of water.
  • george29223
    george29223 Posts: 556 Member
    lol but what if it was 8 women 1 cup now that would be something
  • sunnyday789
    sunnyday789 Posts: 309 Member
    It's really an average of 8 cups of fluid (i.e. can be juice, milk, coffee, pop, etc) that you need.
    Like you pointed out, why do people want to pee so much? Poor use environmental resources flushing the toilet all day long, to say nothing about the chemicals used to "clean" the sewage water.
  • ComicBookGeekGirl
    ComicBookGeekGirl Posts: 202
    Everyone is different. A smaller person wouldn't need 8 cups a day and a larger person might need more. On busy days when I am running around, I need like 10 cups or I feel dehydrated. On days when I am chilling or laying around, I might only need about 4 and be fine.
  • LMHinson15
    LMHinson15 Posts: 201 Member
    I've seen research posted from both sides. So i go with what works for me.

    I drink a LOT of water (like 12 or more a day). When I do I don't get tired as easily, and the weight comes off faster. Don't know why. Don't care. Each person just need to find what works for them.
  • gastankerdriver
    gastankerdriver Posts: 162
    Water is what moves material through your digestive system. Without water, everything comes to a halt.
  • jelias1
    jelias1 Posts: 97
    In 1945 the Food and Nutrition Board, now part of the National Academy of Sciences's Institute of Medicine, suggested that a person consume one milliliter of water (about one fifth of a teaspoon) for each calorie of food. The math is pretty simple: A daily diet of around 1,900 calories would dictate the consumption of 1,900 milliliters of water, an amount remarkably close to 64 ounces.

    In a person that is dieting or changing their lifestyle water helps to keep them away from coffee, tea, milk, soda, juice that normally is high in sugar.

    If your outside and working or live in the southern US it is wiser to just follow the rule of 8 cups of water since you can lose a lot due to sweating. Kidneys and digestive system tend to work better with more water.
  • bikinibeliever
    bikinibeliever Posts: 832 Member
    Other than a cup or 2 of coffee, not every day, water is the only thing I drink. Don't know if what they say it true or not. I just prefer water. Hate soda and flavored waters....YUCK! :noway:

    ETA: I drink way more than 8 a day!
  • GwenRN50
    GwenRN50 Posts: 11
    It's in the nursing textbook, that the average adult requires 2000-2500ml (60-80 oz) of fluids per day.
  • TitanGM
    TitanGM Posts: 1,161 Member
    In my normal days I drink 10 - 15, but in training days it goes more than 15 cups a day. I guess it's just me. Everyone's metabolisms works different.
  • skyocom
    skyocom Posts: 41 Member
    I drink anywhere from 2 to 3 gallons daily. I drink it slowly throughout the day starting at 6am and ending at 10 or 11pm. I have never had trouble drinking that much or do I have to use the restroom like crazy. I guess it just depends onthe person.
  • mwcraig34
    mwcraig34 Posts: 359 Member
    I know we need to drink water for our bodies to work! I just think it is a little ridiculous that 8 cups in the min for everyone! I'm 6'3" 313lbs should I consume the same amount of water as a person that is 5'1" 120lbs?
  • Drenched_N_Motivation
    Drenched_N_Motivation Posts: 1,004 Member
    I drink anywhere from 2 to 3 gallons daily. I drink it slowly throughout the day starting at 6am and ending at 10 or 11pm. I have never had trouble drinking that much or do I have to use the restroom like crazy. I guess it just depends onthe person.




    Thats roughly 26 ounces an hour for 15 straight hours. Its like drinking 22 bottles of Arrowhead/Aquafina water a day. Overkill, dont you think?
  • guardian419
    guardian419 Posts: 391 Member
    I drink at least a gallon a day, but I'm also thirsty a lot (eating too much salt). Drinking too much water (3+ gallons thereabouts) will actually flush a lot of nutrients out of your system... but don't use that as an excuse to drink less.

    I don't have scientific proof, but I know that the more water I drink, and maintain (after a few days you stop peeing every 10 minutes), I feel a lot better.

    Its been said multiple times though, everyone is different... find what works for you, as long as your pee is clear/SLIGHTLY yellow, you should be ok. If you find your constantly thirsty even with that, talk to your doctor/nutritionist, as some people even with 8+ glasses a day and 'clear' pee can be dehydrated.
  • Nerple
    Nerple Posts: 1,291 Member
    I find when I start drinking more than 25 cups a day, I start getting up in the middle of the night a lot more.
  • skyocom
    skyocom Posts: 41 Member
    I drink anywhere from 2 to 3 gallons daily. I drink it slowly throughout the day starting at 6am and ending at 10 or 11pm. I have never had trouble drinking that much or do I have to use the restroom like crazy. I guess it just depends onthe person.




    Thats roughly 26 ounces an hour for 15 straight hours. Its like drinking 22 bottles of Arrowhead/Aquafina water a day. Overkill, dont you think?

    I carry a 64 oz "jug" and refill it many times throughout the day. Not overkill for me. Again that's just me. I've always been "thirsty".
  • LauraSmyth28
    LauraSmyth28 Posts: 399 Member
    I thought the basic rough guidline was half your weight in lbs in oz? So for me, that is 69.5oz. I drink around 80oz a day, I don't drink much else other than water.
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