How staying hydrated keeps you healthy

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We've all heard it before; drink 6-8 glasses a day to keep the doctor away. It may be cliche, but the truth is that this time honored advice is repeated often for a good reason; Staying adequately hydrated is associated with improved health, and reduced likelihood of illness. A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to sit down with the folks from Glenelg Spring Water, and add my voice to those encouraging people to stay hydrated. Our talk was enjoyable, and I thought it might be interesting to dive into the medical science behind our daily water drinking recommendations, and why it's still important to encourage people to drink enough water.

Lots of people are actually dehydrated

Many people think that by just drinking when they get thirty, they've covered their bases. The fact is however, that the research shows the prevalence of dehydration in adults in some populations has been estimated to be 16–28% depending on age, with the elderly being at increased risk of dehydration. That means that about 1 in 4 people may actually be dehydrated! 

Not staying hydrated can hurt your health

You might ask just what exactly is the big deal about health and water intake anyway? Well, the research here has shown that inadequate hydration is associated with headaches, delirium, constipation, hypo-tension, and even kidney and heart disease.  

On the flip side, adequate hydration can improve your mood, your skin, and literally make you smarter by optimizing your cognitive ability and efficiency. 

Simple steps to staying hydrated

If staying hydrated is difficult for you, here are some tips that can help:

• Keep a bottle of water with you during the day. 
• If you don’t like the taste of plain water, try adding a slice of lemon or lime to your drink.
• Drink water before, during, and after a workout.
• When you’re feeling hungry, drink water. Thirst is often confused with hunger. True hunger will not be satisfied by drinking water. Drinking water may also contribute to a healthy weight-loss plan. Some research suggests that drinking water can help you feel full.
• If you have trouble remembering to drink water, drink on a schedule. For example, drink water when you wake up, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and when you go to bed. Or, drink a small glass of water at the beginning of each hour.
• Drink water when you go to a restaurant. It will keep you hydrated, and it’s free.

Its also important to recognize signs of dehydration, which could include little or no urine, urine that is darker than usual, dry mouth, sleepiness or fatigue, extreme thirst, headache, confusion, dizziness or lightheadedness, or no tears when crying.

These are steps that I try to follow each day to get to my 6-8 glasses of water, and they are steps I'd recommend everyone take.

Check out video of our sit down interview below.