According to the Mayo Clinic, women need about 9 glasses of water per day.
From http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256: “The Institute of Medicine determined that an adequate intake (AI) for men is roughly about 13 cups (3 liters) of total beverages a day. The AI for women is about 9 cups (2.2 liters) of total beverages a day.”
Holy Sasparilla, Batman! Those of us with a fear of public bathrooms must be quivering in our Crocs. If you exercise a lot, live in a sweaty climate, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or have certain medical conditions, you may need even more water.
The key to surviving the Mayo’s revelation can be found in the word “beverages.” You don’t have to trudge to fountains and faucets all day. You don’t have to tote large, water bottles like albatrosses of eventual doom everywhere. In fact, you can almost entirely avoid pure H2O.
Foods can help, especially fruits and vegetables. Eat watermelon, a sweet deliciousness that’s 90% water. Melons are mostly water. Mayo claims food provides about 20% of our water needs.
Drink milk and splash that stuff over your cereal. Milk and juice should be viewed as cleverly disguised water. Contrary to some websites that want to make us miserable, even beer, wine, coffee, tea and soda provide water. We are told alcoholic and caffeinated beverages should not make up most of our daily fluid intake, and I’m sure that’s true. But they will add a bit to the water tally, even as they dehydrate you. Besides, at least in my universe, caffeinated beverages are not optional.
So what do you do if you don’t like pure water? Water may be calorie-free and readily available, but many people doubt its deliciousness. A few don’t even consider it palatable.
Random tip for today: Reader, I suggest you spend some time tallying up your water sources and investigating water alternatives that might help you make your numbers. Sparkly water with a splash of juice? Green or herbal teas? A squeeze of lemon or lime with ice on top of your faucet water?
If you always feel great and drink only 5 glasses of water, ignore me. I frankly think we should ignore most of the so-called nutritional experts, a group populated with too many in-the-moment fashionistas. Suddenly the nutritional universe swerves wildly in the direction of kale. Smoothies turn greener while only sometimes managing to hold on to their deliciousness. Bammm! We discover the Ancient Grains and watch as the market for spelt explodes.
Despite nutritional fashion, though, I think the experts may have something with that water thing. Water’s effects are subtle. I believe I feel more energetic when I drink those extra glasses. I have a little more energy. My body works better. I don’t eat as much junk because I’m less hungry. My ability to connect with beings in parallel universes becomes stronger.
O.K., water may not offer a portal across dimensions, I’ll admit. But it’s easy to let water intake slip, especially for people who love caffeinated beverages. Question for today: How might you fit another glass or two of water into your routine?
Except for the rare cup of herbal tea, I don’t drink anything *but* water, and plenty of it, so all fine here. A tablespoon of milk in the morning oatmeal doesn’t count, I’m sure, and I can’t handle a lot of dairy, so reserve it for CHEESE, GROMIT. Can’t drink caffeinated beverages. Juice is empty calories and more sugar than anyone needs. Haven’t had a soda in decades. Might drink a small amount of alcohol once or twice a year. I am BO-RING!
Agree with you wholeheartedly re: nutrition fads. My parents didn’t worry about vitamin supplements or fiber or gluten or what Fred Flintstone ate. Nutrition is a relatively new field, and after all the nonsense spouted about it over the past couple of decades, the newest “discovery” is that hey, every person has an individual response to the stuff they intake, so no one size fits all. What a surprise!
As I watch my mom and dad powerdose all that ice cream, I am clear that advice will not save us. My late aunts lived so much more virtuously than their older sister.