How much water do we really need to drink each day?

Question

Some health websites say you should drink around 8 glasses of water a day but I've heard that we actually get enough liquid from the food we eat so only need one or two glasses of water. Surely our ancestors (or nomads in Africa or aboriginies in Australia) didn't carry that much water everywhere

Answer 1

Stick to the eight glasses rule. Don't count the water in tea and coffee and any other food or liquid.

Answer 2

Many so-called experts state we should consume 8 glasses for water per day. There is no fixed amount that we should consume. It is more about maintaining a specific level of hydration. If you have an office job with a good A/C and go straight home to your family, 8 glasses of water is way too much. Plus, how big is the glass. Not specific enough is it.

If the average person is drinking 2 large glasses per day, they are doing very good.

If you workout and sweat alot, you will need an extra glass or two. Water is also needed to flush out toxins in your body after a heavy workout. Not everybody does regular heavy workouts.

Softdrinks, beer and various other drinks make us have to go to the bathroom more often. This will dehydrate your body and should be replaced with water (not more soda).

If you are sick with the flu and puking your guts out, you need more water.

I have read and heard that a standard glass is 8 oz. Americans use much larger in reality. Eight glasses is a lot of water. Also, do not forget we get water from other sources such as soups, fruits, and vegtables. If you eat healthy and live healthy, two large glasses is enough for the average person.

Answer 3

Our ancestors only lived to be about 30. Read the dehydration website. We need 6-8 glasses of water to keep our body in top condition. Doctors now believe that is why we get cancer not enough water is drunk. I drink 2-3 gallons per day and my bowel movements are light yellow like a baby's. I am 50 and I have no aches or pains because water cushions the joints. It is also believed that water keeps us from getting osteoporosis and Alzheimers. You need to go and study your geography and history. Most contries were an oasis. That means they had plenty of water and food to go around because there was not that many people populating the world at that time.

Answer 4

It is likely I will drink one cup of something with water in it. A cola, a coffee, some beverage that will cause flow and sweat. So, three glasses of plain water a day for a person sitting in the chair working on the computer, for eight hours or more, is ample if they don't want to get too stuffed up.


Ancestors, No, they carried around jugs of sealed drink. Kept barrels near the sails drippings spots to catch the foggy dew.

Drank whatever was available for what they could afford otherwise. Since none of the world at the time was much concerned about water swimming with vile little creatures.
Rum became a common drink aboard ship with lime and lemons to keep rickets from developing in the sailors.

But the theory for eight 6 ounce glasses of water a day is sound for those active people who are going about the day, from one place to another. Like children in a school, or playing around the yard.

In our youth we actually knew, readily, when we were thirsty. We would go to the faucet inside the house, or out in the yard, or on any neighbors yard and get a drink from it while playing. Water was fresh out of the taps back then.

Pipes get old. In all them years of use, water decays pipes, of plaster or metal and causes particles of debris to build up in them.

Just like in our bodies. So when we get older and stay active we must use Water to keep the vessels clear of matter that causes the blood to get blocked.

The more we maintain that level of eight 6 ounce glasses of water in any twelve hour day, the more we maintain our own bodies ability to flush out that other stuff we drink that taste so sweat or makes us feel so good, but is not all that good for us.

Answer 5

You need to drink 8 glasses of water each day as your body is 80% water your always loosing water when you sweat.it is true that you get water from food but you still need 8 glasses to keep you healthy so you don't get dehydrated

Answer 6

I think people who eat a lot of fresh fruits and veggies could probably get by with less, but given all the processed crap that we tend to consume, we do need a lot of pure water to process it.
Also consider that the aboriginies rarely lived as long as we do now, given our current knowledge about nutrition. Sometimes the 'original way' is not necesarily the best way...

Answer 7

i've asked this same question! i was taught 8 8oz glasses a day. that equals 64 oz a day. i dont know N E BODY (currently alive) that drinks that much water a day. i do believe in the goodness and healing properties of water so long as its pure. I DONT TRUST THOSE VITAMIN WATER CONCOCTIONS!! and i dont believe all these different bottled water companies are actually drawing water offa actually springs n e more! i luv the filtration systems but they can be pricey. for city children of the 70's walk with me for a minute... remember when u got a glass of water from the tap, u had to let it run, for it to get cold, but also... when u got that glass full it was kinda cloudy/fizzy so u had to wait for it to clear up. but when it did it was the best damn glass of water!! or one better... evrybody grandmam had that old gallon milk jug, way in the back of the fridge, filled with that tap water she done boiled!!! y'all know that be the best damn water ever!! y'all feel me?? alright, sorry for goin long. take care!
p.s. to sylvia5482 ur philosophy sounds just like my dearly departed Daddy. i mean that in utmost respect!

Answer 8

I read an article by a physician that gave this formula: take your weight, divide it by 2, drink that many ounces of water a day. The doctor also added that soda, juice, coffee, etc. do not count in that calculation.

Answer 9

at least 80 ounces a day