Are you drinking enough each day? How much is enough? There is no single answer that fits everybody. Understanding water’s vital role in our bodies may inspire you to add water to your daily routine.
Here are just a few roles water instills:
The tissues in our eyes, nose and mouth need a moist environment;
Our joints use water to stay lubricated;
Water carries nutrients and oxygen to our cells and toxins away; and
Water even offers protection to our organs.
Basically water, which makes up two-thirds of our body, is needed by every system to function properly.
More importantly, knowing the factors that influence your individual needs can help you determine what is right for you. Let’s look first at what we lose thought perspiration, respiration, and elimination. On average these 2 to 2.5 liters is what we should be replacing daily, 20 percent though food and 80 percent though eight 8-oz. cups.
Easy so far. Now depending on how active you are, your body will need more of this clear liquid wonder. Adding one to two more servings per hour of physical activity is a good start.
Be mindful of adding electrolytes during long high impact activity. Your environment also plays a big role in your hydration needs. Living in the arid desert, one’s intake should increase by two servings, as well as cold whether to maintain proper body temperature. Individuals living with health challenges may also want to increase their water intake by a serving or more. When traveling by airplane where there’s low humidity, one more 8-oz. serving per hour up is a good guideline to follow. And last but not least, pregnant and nursing moms, whose amazing bodies require 3 to 4 additional glasses this vital nutrient.
The simple way I keep track of my liquid consumption is with a 64-oz. re-useable water bottle found in most drug stores. Then, depending on the influencing factors in my life, I may add more. I carry my 64-oz.bottle everywhere I go. I never leave home without it.
Gina Izzo is the Healthy Lifestyles Contributor on Tucson’s NBC affiliate station. Her passion is to inspire, and empower people to take personal responsibility for their well being. To find out more, visit www.gohealthaz.com