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Are you drinking too much water?
The answer is probably no. Yet recent media reports of water intoxication have left many iVillagers confused over how much water they should be drinking a day. Dr Sarah Brewer advises on how to keep your fluid intake healthy
Water is more important to our health than most people realise. During an averagely active day in a temperate climate such as the UK, we lose around 2.5 litres of fluid from our body, either through the lungs as water vapour, through the skin as sweat, or through the kidneys as urine. A small amount is also lost through the bowels. If you take vigorous exercise or visit a hot country, it is easy to lose twice this amount. Athletes in hot climates may lose as much as 10 litres of fluid per day.
The body normally maintains a fine fluid balance. As long as we replace our daily water losses through adequate drinking and eating, excess fluid passes into your circulation and is usually filtered out by the kidneys. If you are slightly dehydrated, you will pass less urine than normal. This is because your body will carefully conserve its water stores and also trigger sensations of thirst.
Ideally, we need to drink at least two litres (eight glasses) of pure water per day, in addition to other fluids, such as alcohol, tea, coffee and soft drinks. Children should drink approximately half this amount, depending on their age. Although we should ideally drink at least eight glasses of water a day, only 10% do so. Over half the population only drink between one and four glasses of water a day, and this can lead to dehydration.
Dehydration is a common cause of tiredness, poor concentration, reduced alertness, recurrent headaches and mood changes. It can also lead to constipation, kidney stones, and even a blood clot, heart attack or stroke, as it increases the thickness and stickiness of blood.
Water is more important to our health than most people realise. During an averagely active day in a temperate climate such as the UK, we lose around 2.5 litres of fluid from our body, either through the lungs as water vapour, through the skin as sweat, or through the kidneys as urine. A small amount is also lost through the bowels. If you take vigorous exercise or visit a hot country, it is easy to lose twice this amount. Athletes in hot climates may lose as much as 10 litres of fluid per day.
The body normally maintains a fine fluid balance. As long as we replace our daily water losses through adequate drinking and eating, excess fluid passes into your circulation and is usually filtered out by the kidneys. If you are slightly dehydrated, you will pass less urine than normal. This is because your body will carefully conserve its water stores and also trigger sensations of thirst.
Ideally, we need to drink at least two litres (eight glasses) of pure water per day, in addition to other fluids, such as alcohol, tea, coffee and soft drinks. Children should drink approximately half this amount, depending on their age. Although we should ideally drink at least eight glasses of water a day, only 10% do so. Over half the population only drink between one and four glasses of water a day, and this can lead to dehydration.
Dehydration is a common cause of tiredness, poor concentration, reduced alertness, recurrent headaches and mood changes. It can also lead to constipation, kidney stones, and even a blood clot, heart attack or stroke, as it increases the thickness and stickiness of blood.
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iVillage Ltd is a UK company registered in England & Wales (3837269) at 80-110 New Oxford Street, London WC1 1HB
