Why is Drinking Enough Water Important to Live a Healthy Life?

Sufficient water intake (in the form of drinking water, food, or other fluids) is necessary for the proper functioning of our body. Drinking enough water is important because we lose water daily through sweat, breathing, urine, and stool. A study says consuming safe and sufficient water helps the practice of hygiene, which plays a key role in preventing diarrhoeal diseases, acute respiratory infections, and numerous neglected tropical diseases. Implementing a few effortless techniques in your daily routine can help you achieve a better life. We have discussed in detail why you need to drink more water and how you can do that.

Benefits of Drinking More Water

Water has several benefits for our health. Some of them include:

1. Water Helps Maintain the Balance of Body Fluids: Our body consists of, which helps with digestion, absorption, blood circulation, nutrient transportation, and absorption, etc. Consuming more water helps in maintaining the balance in the concentration of these fluids.
2. It Helps Maximize Physical Performance: Water helps energize muscles by supporting the cells to maintain the level of fluids and electrolytes. Dehydration during high-intensity sports activity can lead to decreased blood pressure, hyperthermia, and seizures. Therefore, staying hydrated before, during, and after intense exercises is important.
3. It Helps Produce Required Saliva and Mucus: Drinking enough water helps produce saliva and helps keep our nose, mouth, and eyes moist as well.
4. It Supports Your Kidneys: Kidneys get rid of toxins in the form of urine. Drinking enough water will support the kidneys to function well without any issues. If you’re not hydrated enough, you may experience painful urination, darker in color, and smell foul. Dehydration also leads to UTIs, kidney stones, or kidney-related diseases, and in severe cases, it might lead to kidney damage.
5. It Can Help Maintain Cholesterol Levels: If you are looking to lose weight, staying hydrated is a good first step. Drinking enough water increases satiety and boosts your metabolic rate, ultimately leading to a balanced cholesterol level.
6. Drinking Enough Water Helps You Get Rid of Bodily Waste: A significant importance of staying hydrated and drinking enough water throughout the day is that it dissolves our body’s waste products so that they can be removed in the form of perspiration, urine, and defecation. It also helps with digestion.
7. It Helps Fight Off Illness: Water helps in flushing out toxins like pathogens and supports the skin and mucus cell membranes, acting as a barrier to prevent certain bacteria from entering the body. Another reason why drinking water is important is that it helps fight off certain diseases and helps prevent certain medical conditions, for example:

• Constipation
• Kidney-related diseases
• High blood pressure
• Asthma induced through intense physical activity

Apart from the points mentioned above, water has amazing qualities to enhance your bodily functions inside and outside. Water is a part of necessary nutrition, improves blood oxygen circulation, enhances energy, improves your skin, lubricates joints, prevents hangovers, treats kidney stones, maintains body temperature, alleviates hypertension, and more.

Do We Drink Enough Water?

The amount of water to be consumed is not the same for everyone; it varies from person to person, but the average daily intake of water, according to a study, is 2.7 liters (11 cups) for adult women a day and 3.7 liters (15 cups) for men. 80% of this should be consumed through fluids (water, juices, etc), and the rest should be from food, especially hydrating fruits and vegetables. The in-depth study of water use and water intrinsic to food in the US found a 20.7% contribution from food and water.

5 Tips to Help You Drink More Water:

Now that we know why drinking water is important, we will discuss a few tips to help you drink more water:

1. Try consuming a healthy drink before every meal.
2. Drink beverages that taste good and are healthy too. The better the taste, the more you will consume it.
3. Since 20 % of our fluid intake should come from food, try eating hydrating fruits and vegetables.
4. Carry a water bottle while traveling, commuting, working, etc.
5. Choose water-rich foods like lettuce, watermelon, honeydew melon, celery, etc.
6. Drink a glass of water after waking up.

Need Help to Live a Healthy Life? Contact Newnan Family Medicine

If you have any dehydration symptoms, follow the above-mentioned techniques in your daily routine to eliminate them. However, sometimes, despite following a healthy routine, the issues tend to occur again. In that case, you can contact our professionals at Newnan Family Medicine to help you with the best treatment for your needs.