Water is indispensable for our body and plays an important role in many bodily functions. Below we discuss some of the key benefits of drinking enough water.
1. It helps with digestion
Water aids digestion by transporting nutrients and removing waste products. It makes food easier to transport through the body and prevents constipation. Not drinking enough water can lead to constipation and poor digestion.
2. It regulates body temperature
Water plays an important role in regulating our body temperature. When we lose a lot of water through sweating, for example during exercise or work in a warm climate, it is important to replenish this water quickly to prevent overheating.
3. Better sleep
A sip of water before going to sleep not only maintains your fluid balance. This also brings your muscles, joints and hormones into balance. This ensures that you relax your body better. This can prevent insomnia. This way you get enough sleep and wake up rested!
4. It supports the skin
Water is also important for the health of our skin. When we don't drink enough water, our skin can feel dry and saggy. Drinking enough water helps keep the skin hydrated and elastic, making it look healthier and younger.
5. It supports memory and concentration
Water is also important for our brain and it helps with concentration and memory. When we don't drink enough water, we can suffer from headaches, fatigue and reduced concentration.
6. It helps maintain your weight
Drinking enough water can also help manage our weight. Water has no calories and helps fill us up, making us less likely to overeat. In addition, water aids in digestion and waste removal, which can also help maintain your weight.
HOW DOES WATER AFFECT OUR ENERGY?
One of the main ways water affects our energy is by helping us stay hydrated. If we don't drink enough water, we can feel tired, lethargic and even nauseous. In addition, drinking enough water is important for regulating our blood pressure, which also affects our energy.
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF DRINKING TOO LITTLE WATER?
If you don't get enough fluid, you can become dehydrated. Your body can survive several weeks without food, but only a few days without water. If you lose more than 7-8% of your body weight in fluid, you gradually lose consciousness. That is why it is important to drink enough during exercise, for example, because even a loss of 2% of fluid can negatively affect your performance.
Let's give an example. Imagine that someone weighing 89 kg exercises intensively and after this effort still weighs 85 kg, which means a difference of 4 kg in fluid. This amounts to 4.5% of body weight. It may seem extreme, but you can lose 2 liters of fluid in just one hour of running. With higher intensity training and unfavorable conditions (e.g. weather conditions), the loss can be even greater.
To maintain your performance during exercise, it is important to drink enough before, during and after training. A good rule is to consume 1.5 liters of water for every kilogram of fluid lost. This is more than the loss, but the extra 0.5 liters is needed to absorb the fluid loss through the bladder.
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE DRINKING ENOUGH WATER?
A good way to determine this is to check the color of your urine. If the urine has a light color, this means that your fluid percentage is fine. However, darker urine indicates a fluid deficiency and it is then wise to drink more water. It is especially useful to check this before you make an effort, to know what your starting position is.
SYMPTOMS OF A FLUID DEFICIENCY
The most common signs of a fluid deficiency are as follows:
- thirst (this feeling decreases as you get older);
- hunger (your body sometimes confuses hunger and thirst);
- a dark colored urine;
- a dry mouth and lips;
- headache;
- dizziness or feeling light-headed;
- fatigue;
- poor concentration;
- blockage.
In extreme cases these are:
- drowsiness, confusion;
- circles under the eyes and deep-set eyes;
- dry mucous membranes;
- dry-looking skin that doesn't spring back right away when you squeeze it;
- cramps in your arms and/or legs;
- low blood pressure;
- cardiac arrhythmias and rapid heart rate;
CAN YOU ALSO DRINK TOO MUCH WATER?
Yes, drinking too much water can have harmful effects on our body. Our kidneys can only process a limited amount of water per hour (0.7 to 1 liter) and when we drink too much, we can develop low sodium levels in our blood, which can lead to arrhythmias in our heart. Extreme amounts of water can even cause water retention in our brains. It is important to realize that water intoxication is a serious risk. Fortunately, less than 1% of marathon runners develop symptoms of water intoxication. However, some groups of people, such as those who take longer than 4 hours to complete a marathon or who run or walk in colder weather, are more susceptible to this risk. The most effective way to prevent water intoxication is to rely on our natural indicator: thirst.
TIPS FOR DRINKING ENOUGH WATER
To ensure that you drink enough water, you can apply the following tips:
- Set an alarm: Set an alarm to remind you to drink water. This will help you stay on track and ensure your daily water intake.
- Use a water bottle : Take a water bottle with you to work or on the road so that you always have enough water on hand.
- Add flavor: If you don't like water, you can flavor it by adding fruits, vegetables or herbs, for example.
- Make it a habit: Make drinking water a regular part of your daily routine. You will soon notice that your body gets used to this and you reduce the temptation to drink other drinks.
WATER FROM THE TAP OR FROM A BOTTLE?
In the Netherlands the tap water is so good that you really don't have to waste money on bottled water. Abroad it varies per country. For example, the water is good in most European countries, but you should absolutely not drink it if you are in Africa, for example. It is therefore wise to find out before you go on holiday whether you can drink the water from the tap at your holiday destination. In general, it is well indicated whether tap water is drinkable and if in doubt you can always opt for bottled water.
DRINK WATER IN A WARM CLIMATE
In a warm climate (and even on a hot day in the Netherlands) our body loses more fluid. This is because we sweat more than normal in the heat. This makes it important to drink extra water. The advice in a warm climate is to drink at least 2 liters of water per day and preferably a little more.
Be aware that the heat affects your feeling of thirst. This often decreases in warm weather. Even if, for whatever reason, you do not drink anything for a long time, your feeling of thirst disappears and this can of course be very dangerous. You will not be the first to rely on your sense of thirst and be admitted to a foreign hospital with symptoms of dehydration, even though you have not been thirsty at all. So in a warm climate, make sure you drink enough water, even if you are not thirsty.
BRING WATER WHEN YOU GO
If you are going on a trip, a day out or traveling, you still want to drink enough water. Many people choose to take a bottle of water with them and always refill it with water from the tap. However, be aware that if this is a regular plastic bottle, there is a chance that if you drink from the same bottle regularly or for a longer period of time, the bottle will become dirty and bacteria will develop. That is why it is better to use a reusable water bottle , preferably made of glass or stainless steel so that bacteria cannot adhere. By rinsing it every day with soapy water, you always drink from a clean bottle.
RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF WATER PER DAY
The recommended amount of water per day varies. It depends on several factors such as age, weight, activity level and climate. But as a general guideline, it is recommended to drink about 2 liters of water every day. That amounts to approximately 8 glasses of 250 ml.
It is important to know that this recommended amount is a guideline and may be different for everyone. For example, people who exercise a lot or work in a warm climate need more water than people who have a sedentary lifestyle.
HOW IS THE AMOUNT OF WATER DRINKING CALCULATED?
There are a number of ways to determine how much water you need per day. A well-known way is the formula: (body weight in kilograms) x 0.033 = recommended amount of water in liters per day.
Fortunately, you can now make it a lot easier for yourself to determine what the recommended amount of water per day is for you personally. We have developed a handy calculator for this purpose. You can easily fill this in above this text. This way you know exactly how much water you should drink per day and ensure that you keep your body in top condition.
FINALLY
As you have read in this blog, drinking enough water is important for our health and maintaining your body and contributes to a healthy lifestyle. The recommended amount of water per day varies depending on several factors, but as a general guideline it is recommended to drink approximately 2 liters of water every day. Drinking water supports many bodily functions, including digestion, body temperature regulation, skin health, memory and concentration, and weight management. Make sure you drink water regularly and listen to your thirst to ensure you get enough water.
