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Water - Why It's Good To Drink 8 Glasses A Day

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Written by Maria Esposito

Saturday, 12 July 2008

Normally, approximately 2.5 litres of water is required daily for a fairly sedentary adult in a normal environment to replace the total loss of water that occurs though urine, faeces, skin and lungs.

by MariaEsposito

Normally, approximately 2.5 litres of water is required daily for a fairly sedentary adult in a normal environment to replace the total loss of water that occurs though urine, faeces, skin and lungs.

Just under half of this should be in the form of drinks such as water or cold herbal teas and just under a litre from food. The remaining 300ml is created by the body from its own metabolic processes.

Problems that arise from not drinking enough water is as follows.

1. Increase in pulse rate and in rectal temperature

2. Respiration rate goes up

3. Tingling and numbness of fingers and feet

4. Blood concentration increases

5. Reduced blood volume and more difficult circulation of the blood

The difficulty and problems of the blood circulation under such conditions leads to:

1. breathing difficulties

2. gastrointestinal upsets

3. nauseousness and loss of appetite

4. if it continues, muscular and emotional problems

In an animal study, where water was restricted the animals were highly irritable and in some cases bad tempered.

Thirst

It has been demonstrated that under intense physical activity a male will only drink voluntarily around 50% as much water as what is required to replace losses from urine and sweat. Only after rest and food do the cravings for the required amount of water return to replace the fluid deficit.

Hot Drinks

After drinking hot liquids, the internal temperature of the body rises, resulting in sweating. This cools the body down. This is sometimes used in the practice of medicine when an increase in body temperature is required for a short time, or whether sweating is required. So it is preferable to choose cool or cold drinks rather than hot ones to replace fluid losses, particularly if hot drinks are the only types of drinks that are normally chosen.

Sugar drinks

During physical activities lasting less than 90 minutes, water is generally the beverage of choice, however, the inclusion of small concentrations of carbohydrate (6%-8% carbohydrate) have been shown to better sustain power output over water alone during physical activities that produce fatigue in 60 minutes or longer.

About the Author:

Maria has worked in alternative medicine as a nutritionalist and reflexologist. She is qualified in therapy massage and sports injuries. Her speciality is the remedy of allergy. She can be contacted at london nutritionist

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