How Do You Know if You’re Drinking Enough Water?
Throughout each day, your body loses water through your urine and sweat glands—even when you’re not purposely working up a sweat. As a result, you have to constantly replenish this fluid, and soft drinks do not count toward this requirement...
Coffee and soda are typically high in caffeine, which acts as a diuretic that can dehydrate you. Worse yet, sodas, fruit juices, and other sweetened beverages are primary sources of fructose, which will only deteriorate your health.
Ditto for artificially sweetened beverages. So the key is to drink pure water. But just how much water do you need each day? While an oft-repeated guideline says you should drink eight glasses of water a day, this may be too much for some, and not enough for others.
Your water requirement can also vary wildly from day to day depending on a number of factors, such as your activity level and weather conditions.
Fortunately, your body is equipped with a mechanism that tells you when you need to replenish your water supply. It’s called thirst. And there’s also a simple way to gauge whether or not you need to drink more water even though you may not be feeling thirsty.
How to Read the Signs for Your Body’s Water Needs
Fatigue and/or mood swings
Hunger even though you’ve recently eaten
Back or joint aches
Dull, dry skin and/or pronounced wrinkles
Infrequent urination; dark, concentrated urine, and/or constipation
The Color of Your Urine Is an Important Marker
Symptoms of Chronic Dehydration
Digestive disturbances such as heartburn and constipation
Confusion and/or anxiety
Urinary tract infections
Premature aging
High cholesterol
