When your thirst is to experience everything and be healthy, one of the best choices you can make is to invest in drinking more water every day. Fluids represent 60% to 75% of our body and participate in almost all bodily functions. Therefore, by hydrating yourself very well:
- protect the heart
- Relieves constipation
- have more concentration
- Improve mood and well-being
- Reduces headaches
- Decreases the risk of kidney stones
- Make the skin a shield
- Avoid infections like colds
- You can even lose weight
Below, we explain each of these benefits of drinking more water in more detail, all backed by science.
Yes, you can lose weight.
Present in the structure of the tissues, of the molecules, inside and outside the cells, good hydration guarantees the correct functioning of the metabolism, which can benefit people who need to control or lose weight.
Scientists continue to observe these effects and some studies already indicate that drinking more water is related to lower calorie consumption, increased energy expenditure and burning of body fat. All this, of course, contributes to weight loss. The data was published in the scientific journal Nutrients.
Additionally, drinking an extra 1, 2, or 3 glasses of water per day can not only reduce your intake by the equivalent of 68-205 calories per day, but also your sodium consumption, which is an enemy in excess. health claims, according to a study at the University of Illinois.
You can drink water during meals, yes! Among the elderly, the measure also helps digestion, as dry mouth is common at this stage of life.
you protect the heart
It’s true that staying hydrated benefits most bodily functions, but proper heart function is one of the most important.
- Drinking enough water helps the organ to be more efficient at pumping blood, which gives strength to the action of the vessels and veins, and still cooperates for good circulation.
- These measures support heart function but also contribute to the reduction of heart diseases such as heart failure in the long term.
Relieves constipation
When you start drinking more liquids, the improvement of intestinal transit is one of the first effects observed.
Scientific research on the relationship between hydration and gastrointestinal function is limited, especially among people who have no known disease, as well as those with functional constipation, whose trips to the bathroom are painful, infrequent, and still cause abdominal pain.
Despite this, improved water intake and dietary adjustments benefit most people with a trapped intestine.
For those who have difficulties with water intake, a food plan can be proposed which will include, in addition to water, tea, juicy fruit, such as pineapple, watermelon and melon, broths and soups, all to compose a balanced diet. which also counts with the fibers.
can you concentrate?
- To function as they should, neurons and synapses need fluids, and when they are insufficient, there is a reduction in cognitive responses, especially those involving attention and executive functions, i.e. that group of skills that we use every day to work, learn and implement our self-control, as well as motor coordination.
- Since the nutrient is essential for the maintenance of the body’s vital functions, which we call basal, the loss or lack of water leads to a fluid and electrolyte imbalance, which can have the immediate effect of mental confusion.
- It is sufficient that there is a loss equal to 2% of the body mass of water for these effects to be observed.
- Among inattentive children, a glass of water is enough to improve attention and memory, as reported by the scientific journal Nutrients.
Those who love air conditioning must remember that it dries the eyes and also the mucous membranes such as the mouth, throat and nostrils. All the more reason to drink extra glasses of water throughout the day.
You are fine with life
Anyone can have a bad day where anger, hostility, and tension are present. But when these emotions recur and you cannot find a basis for this, it is good to evaluate the volume of water consumed in recent days.
All of these behaviors are related to hypohydration, which also contributes to depression and that discouragement that doesn’t go away.
Some studies continue to evaluate whether anxiety can also be influenced by poor water intake: the data is not yet significant, but some connection has already been found. The data was published by World Journal of Psychiatry.
Reduce headaches
It is not yet possible to say with 100% certainty that dehydration could be the cause of the headache. On the other hand, the medical literature points out that improving water consumption can alleviate some of its types.
- Headaches are a common complaint of those who go hours without hydration, and the solution is simple: pay more attention to hydration.
- Lack of fluids can have the effect of contracting the brain, which causes it to move away from the skull, causing headaches.
- In healthy people who deprive themselves of water, rehydration not only relieves the symptom (including migraine), but also reduces its duration and intensity.
- In emergency care for people with acute headaches and migraines, the protocol of care is fluid replacement.
Get rid of kidney stones
This advantage is unanimous among scientists. Increasing your daily water intake is associated with a reduction in the appearance of kidney stones.
Maintaining the regularity of this hydration on a daily basis is considered the secret to preventing this type of stone, its return, as well as the timing of its reappearance.
Make your skin a shield
Our body does not store water because, after consumption, it is distributed throughout the body.
- A glass of water takes 30 to 60 minutes to go through, leaving a little of its formula in the blood, which will spread its benefits to all muscles and organs.
- The largest, the skin, has the function of protecting you from the aggressions of microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria, as well as from chemicals and the sun.
- By drinking more water, you help ensure that the outermost part of the epidermis — the stratum corneum — stays hydrated, thus fulfilling its role as a protective shield.
- The practice may especially benefit the younger ones, as it has not yet been established whether this result also benefits the elderly. The mechanism of this, so far, has not been elucidated.
Thirst is the main symptom that your body needs more water. But the color of the pee, the feeling of dry mouth and a slight headache also indicate that it is time to drink liquids.
You dribble infections
Hydration and infections form a vicious cycle: neglecting the former not only predisposes you to infections, but also increases the risk of more serious conditions, while infection causes fluid loss and even makes it difficult to replenish.
Could you understand the connection with covid-19 and other respiratory infections like flu and cold?
In case of dehydration the cells lose their permeability, the body’s defense responses are compromised, as are the mucous barriers.
Although there is still no consensus among doctors, it is known that lack of fluids is the cause of hypernatremia – high concentration of sodium in the blood – a condition often observed among covid patients, especially the elderly and children. The data was published in the medical journal Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation.
Does it really have to be 2 litres?
It can be difficult to do the math that scientists expect us to do to figure out how much water you should be drinking each day.as the mathematical calculation requires the multiplication of 30ml to 35ml for each kilogram of weight among adults.
To make it easier, write it so you don’t forget:
- The general rule is 8 glasses (1 glass equals 250ml) for women (pregnancy and breastfeeding: increase by one glass!) and 10 for men.
- Factors such as individual metabolism, ambient temperature, diet and age, as well as the presence of any disease and the amount of physical activity can change this equation.
- For children: 100 ml for each kilogram of weight, up to 10 kg; plus 50 ml for each kilo from 10 kg to 20 kg; and from 20 kg onwards, increase by 20 ml for each extra kilo. For example, a 22 kg child should drink 1,540 ml of water per day.
When choosing what to put in each glass, the Ministry of Health suggests preferring pure water, which can be “seasoned” or flavored with lemon slices or mint leaves.
Tea, coffee, fruit juices and succulent foods, i.e. rich in water, other types of drinks also count, the only precaution is to avoid those with added sugars.
Sources: Fernanda Késsia Rodrigues de Souzaclinical nutritionist and resident at HC-UFPE (Hospital das Clínicas of the Federal University of Pernambuco), which is part of the Ebserh network (Brazilian Company of Hospital Services); Ivan Savioli Ferrazpediatrician and professor in the Department of Child Care and Pediatrics of FMRP-USP (University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto Medical School); Pablo Antonio Vidalintensive care physician at HULW-UFPB (Lauro Wanderley University Hospital of the Federal University of Paraíba), connected to the Ebserh network; Paula Piresgeneral practitioner and endocrinologist at SBEM-SP (Brazilian Society of Endocrinology and Metabology – regional Sao Paulo); Renata Elisie Barbalho de Siqueira, specialist in family and community medicine and infectious disease, master’s student in health policy, planning and management at the USP Faculty of Public Health; doctor preceptor of the internship in family and community medicine, at the same institution.
References: Abneuro (Brazilian Academy of Neurology); SBCe (Brazilian Headache Society); Ministry of Health/Food Guide for the Brazilian population; Akdeniz M, Tomova-Simitchieva T, Dobos G, Blume-Peytavi U, Kottner J. Does dietary fluid intake affect skin hydration in healthy humans? A systematic literature review. Skin resistant technology. 2018 Aug;24(3):459-465. doi:10.1111/srt.12454. Epub 2018 February 2nd. PMID: 29392767.
Zhang C, Wang XL, Liu TZ, Zeng XT, Li S, Duan XW. Autofluid management in the prevention of kidney stones: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of observational studies. Medicine (Baltimore). 2015 July;94(27):e1042. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001042. PMID: 26166074; PMC ID: PMC4504608.
Bellini M, Tonarelli S, Barracca F, Rettura F, Pancetti A, Ceccarelli L, Ricchiuti A, Costa F, de Bortoli N, Marchi S, Rossi A. Chronic constipation: is a nutritional approach reasonable? Nutrients. 2021; 13(10):3386 . https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13103386
Pross N, Demazières A, Girard N, Barnouin R, Metzger D, Klein A, Perrier E, Guelinckx I. Effects of changes in water intake on the mood of high and low drinkers. PLoS One. 2014 April 11;9(4):e94754. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0094754. PMID: 24728141; PMC ID: PMC3984246.
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