The importance of drinking enough water
Are you drinking enough water? These days a lot of people go through their day without a single glass of water. With so many different drinks in the shop to choose, from fizzy drinks to sugared juices people forget how essential it is to drink enough straight water. The recommended amount of fluid intake a day, according to the NHS, is 6-8 glasses a day. This equates to around 1.5-2 litres. A lot more than you think right?
The benefits of drinking enough water:
The main benefit to drinking enough water is to keep hydrated. In summer, this becomes increasingly important as the weather gets warmer and we start to sweat more. This means we’re losing more fluids, so we are vulnerable to dehydration.
Drinking enough water boosts skin health and beauty. When we are dehydrated, we are more vulnerable to skin disorders and early age wrinkling. Drinking enough water will give your skin a natural glow.
Water is important for regulating your body temperature, as previously mentioned we sweat when we’re hot and it’s sweat that cools the body down to a safe temperature, especially when we exercise!
As well as the other benefits to drinking water, using it as an alternative to sugary drinks allows you to manage weight loss much easier as you won’t have to worry about liquid calories from other beverages.
Water is essential for the various systems in our body. In the mouth it helps create saliva which helps us digest our food. It helps flush the waste our body doesn’t need through sweating and removal of urine and faeces. The digestive system depends on our water intake as the bowel needs it to work properly. When we get dehydrated it leads to constipation and an overly acidic stomach which none of us want!
Risks of not drinking enough water:
So, the big one first, dehydration! When we haven’t drank enough water, we become dehydrated. This will make you feel dizzy and tired, make your urine a dark yellow colour and with some people, severe headaches.
When we don’t drink enough water, it shows in our skin. It appears dull and can make the skin, especially the face, ashy and less radiant.
Not drinking enough water can be a cause for your lack of energy levels. The energy systems inn our body need water to function correctly. This can leave you tired and fatigued. It is also known to be a cause for brain fog and not being able to think straight, affecting your day to day work and activities.
Drinking alternatives to water all the time can be very harsh on your teeth. All the sugar in these other drinks can cause tooth decay over time especially in fizzy drinks.
How to get more water into your schedule:
The first thing you can try to get your day started right, is drinking two glasses of water when you first wake up. By adding this as part of your morning routine, you are already about a quarter of the way there to achieving your daily water intake.
Water can be very boring to drink as it’s the most tasteless fluid on the planet! You can add a dash of cordial into your water as this is a healthier alternative to drinking a sugar sweetened soft drink. This also allows you to flavour your water in multiple different ways.
Now this may seem an obvious one, just choose a bottle of water. This doesn’t mean you can never drink any other drink again in your life. But if you’re in the shop buying a drink or ordering a drink with your lunch, and you know you’re behind, choose a glass of water. I promise most bartenders won’t give you a weird look!
Taking a bottle of water to work with you is a great way to drink more. Throughout the day you’ll probably finish it without even realising! This is also a great way to see exactly how much you’ve drank as some bottles have measurements on the side.
Conclusion: Drink more water! Your body will thank you for it!