8 Health Benefits of Drinking Water

WATER

8 Health Benefits of Drinking Water

As general guideline most nurses and doctors recommend their patients to drink eight glasses of water a day. But if you lose a lot of water due to an increase in your activity level, live in a warmer climate or high altitudes where you sweat more, you'll need to drink more than eight glasses of water daily. To avoid being dehydrated, make sure your water intake is equal to the amount of water that's being lost.

Here are the benefits of drinking water:

1. Digestion. The body is composed of 60% - 65% water which aids your body in digestion, creation of saliva, maintaining body temperature, transporting nutrients, absorption and circulation. If your urine is yellow, dark yellow, or if you're feeling thirsty, then you are dehydrated, drink water right away. Avoid drinking alcohol when dehydrated. Consuming alcohol causes you to urine more often which leads to more fluid loss. If your body is well hydrated, the color of your urine should be colorless (unless you're taking vitamins or medication which sometimes can turn your urine into a yellowish color.)

2. Aids with Weight loss. First off water contains no calories and is beneficial with promoting weight loss so avoid sugary drinks. You must have an adequate amount of water in order to burn calories. Not enough water will lead to dehydration slowing down the fat burning process. A good tip is to drink a couple cups of water before your meal making you feel fuller.

3. Keeps Muscles Energized. Muscles cells that don't have enough water causes muscle fatigue and cramps which will affect a persons performance. It's recommended that a person should drink one to two glasses of water about two hours prior to exercising. And during exercise to drink water every 5-10 minutes to replace fluids lost due to sweating.

4. Helps Keep Skin Look Younger and Healthier. The human skin is made up of cells containing water and acts as a protective barrier to prevent water loss. A lack of hydration causes the skin is becomes dry, wrinkled and tight. By keeping our body hydrated we can keep our skin younger longer as we age. A good moisturizer lotion can be used to help keep moisture locked into our skin to protect it from getting dry and to maintain it elasticity due to fluid loss.

5. Helps Protect The Kidneys. When the body is properly hydrated, the kidneys filter toxins, excess fluid, and other water-soluble waste allowing it to pass through the urine.

6. Helps Our Body Maintain Normal Bowel Function. Having enough water in our systems will help keep waste flowing in our gastrointestinal tract preventing constipation. When the body does not have enough water, our colon pulls water from the stools to keep itself hydrated, thus the results is constipation.

7. Improve Work Productivity. Our brain is made up of approximately 75% water. The brain depends on access to water to keep itself functioning. Staying well hydrated improves concentration, thinking process, and keeps the mind more alert.

8. May Helps Reduce The Risk of Cancer. Drinking enough water may help reduce the risk of bladder and colon cancer. When our body is well hydrated it helps dilute cancer causing agents in the urine and shorten the time that the cancer causing agents make contact with the bladder lining.