Healthy Love Bites

But…

Have you ever wondered how much water is enough

I believe the ol’ saying is chiming in your head now; 8 glasses a day, 8 glasses.

Some people used to tell me they drink plenty of water a day but when I ask for the exact total amount. The answer I got was a 500 ml bottle of water . I was like, ‘Wertt?’. That’s not alot, right?

Actually, the amount of water we need to consume depends on the lifestyle we have. Current health issues, living location and your lifestyle all plays a role in the amount of water you need to drink each day. The amount varies for people and each person have to accustom to their own water needs.

Take me for example, I’ve been taught to drink alot of water since young and my body is accustomed to the 3 liters of water input in my body. So, whenever I drink lesser amount of water, I can feel that my body is on the verge of falling sick after a period of water deprivation.

Thus, it’s +- 3 liters for me.

OK, let’s start with the basics. 60% of our body weight is from the water mass and the body system truly relies on water to function properly, from removing toxins from organs, being a nutrient carrier in the body, providing a optimum environment for our ear, nose, throat and even eyes.

Bla bla bla. I’m sure we heard the rest and now, let’s get straight to the point.

Lack of water = Dehydration = Body CANNOT function normally

Since we lose water in the process of respiration, perspiration and urination to name a few. We need to replenish the water output by taking in food and beverages containing rich water supply.

One way which can be used to replace the body’s water loss is by using the replacement approach. This approach is based on the amount of water output our body gives out like, average adult urine output is around 1 liter/day and the other water output like respiration and perspiration involves another liter/day. Therefore, at least 8 glasses of water together with a normal diet is needed to cover the loss of water.

Now, you know where that 8 glasses a day saying came from.

However, some people really don’t need to replenish that much of water loss again. So, as long as you constantly keep our body hydrated, rarely have a thirsty urge and maintain nearly 1 - 2 liters of either colourless / slightly yellow urine. You’re good.

One LAST warning…

There is such a thing called WATER INTOXICATION due to overload of water in the body. This happens when consumption of water is too much causing the electrolytes (sodium compounds) to be diluted in the blood leading to a potentially dangerous shift in balance (too much water and insufficient electrolytes).

Eventually, the cells will suffer from an osmotic shift of water from the extracellular fluid (outside of cells) to the intracellular fluids (within cells). This will affect the osmotic pressure of cells and if it does happen in the central nervous system or the brain, the cells will under go cytolysis (rupture of cells), killing the cells causing symptoms like nausea, vomiting, headaches and sometimes, even causing coma and deaths.

There was a ‘Fastest Water Drinker’ Competition some time ago. I guess I don’t have to tell you what happened to one of the participants.

Death from water intoxication.

That’s it for now. Till the next post.

Cheers, (But don’t overdose, k?)

P.S: You can link this post by using http://kokweiliang.com/lifes-essentials/drinkingwater