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Nutrition Articles  ›  Nutrient Buzz

Water is a Secret Ingredient

Water: The Wild Card of Weight Loss

-- By Zach Van Hart, Staff Writer
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Is water important? Well let’s see, other than making up 50%-60% of our bodies, regulating body temperature, helping our breathing, transporting nutrients, carrying away waste and helping our muscles function, water is pretty much useless. Oh, and you need water or, after three days without it, you’ll die.

So in other words, water is pretty darn essential. It can even be an extremely important (and often unappreciated) weight loss factor.

Somehow, though, water is one of the most neglected parts of our diet. Some of us possibly go an entire day at times without one glass! Every part of your body is dependent on and comprised of water, and the most important parts need even more. Your brain is made up of 75% water, your blood 82% and your lungs nearly 90%.

Besides being a vital component of your body, water also helps to reduce weight. The more hydrated you are, the quicker your metabolism works. When you are dehydrated – even before you start becoming thirsty – your liver has to help the kidneys function and can’t metabolize fat as quickly. Your metabolism slows down, causing some unwanted fat to remain.

If your body is used to not getting water, it actually stores more in ankles, hips and thighs. In other words, it doesn’t trust you to keep bringing water, so it keeps what it can get, like a thirsty cactus. Once it realizes the water will keep coming, your body will get rid of the stores and you’ll lose weight!

Plus, if you’re suffering from cravings or having trouble controlling hunger, drinking water is a quick, healthy way to feel full. Drink a glass when you normally snack, and have one before your meal and right before going out.

Staying hydrated is not restricted to drinking water; milk, juice and other liquids – even some fruits and vegetables – are good sources of water. But avoid caffeinated beverages (coffee, soda), as they actually cause you to lose fluids and become dehydrated.

The recommended daily amount of water is eight cups a day, but don’t feel bad if you have neglected your water intake. Even if you constantly drink coffee or soda, you can make some simple changes to increase the water in your diet. Here are just a few ways to get more water every day:
  • Find the water bottles with pop tops. They’re easier to carry around and use than twist off caps.
  • Keep a water bottle in the car.
  • Take a water break instead of a smoke break at work.
  • Set a rule with your water glass: once it’s empty, it gets filled back up right away.
  • Drink orange juice or eat fruit in the morning.
  • Get two water bottles, one for work and one for home. Fill up one every day when you leave to go home, and fill up the other before you go to bed each night.
  • Order water at restaurants instead of soda. Even if you have something else to drink, have water too.
  • Weekends are the toughest, so be aware of your water and fluid intake throughout Saturday and Sunday. Keep more than one water bottle in the fridge so you always have a cold one.
  • Follow the example of a SparkPeople member: this woman put a water glass on her windowsill with 8 pennies on one side. Each time she filled up her glass and drank it, she moved a penny to the other side, until all the pennies were moved. Great reminder system!
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Member Comments

  • DASYSMITH2
    Human body needs good amount of water daily so as to stay away from complications. If the water consumption is less, then the person can face body heat and other internal health issues, all delivering signs of less-water-level to the body. Your body needs to get hydrated for which plenty of water a day is required to be consumed without fail.

    http://www.what
    isall.com/hea
    lth/what-are-
    the-health-be
    nefits-of-dri
    nking-water.html - 5/3/2013 5:29:12 AM
  • According to an article by Dr. Heinz Valtin at Dartmouth College's Geisel School of Medicine, the "8x8" theory, as it's known, is false. The article says there is no scientific study to back it up.

    Dr. Mark Ellerkmann, a urogynecologist at Mercy Medical Center, said there are certain situations where drinking a lot of water is necessary, such as being in a hot climate or doing vigorous exercise. There are also certain medical conditions that require extra hydration. But he said overall, it's not necessary.

    "Humans are typically pretty good at regulating their own fluid imbalance. Our thirst center tells us when we are thirsty long before we are dehydrated," Ellerkmann said.

    Valtin's article also said the idea that drinking lots of water can fill a person up is also false.

    "What we know about water intake is it doesn't really affect the satiety center in our brain that tells us not to eat so much," Ellerkmann said.

    Another assertion the article makes said caffeinated drinks and some alcoholic beverages actually do count toward your daily water intake.

    "Not just water, but any beverages that we drink, including -- believe it or not -- any dilute alcohol. Beer, for example, can be tallied into that overall intake," Ellerkmann said.

    Read more: http://www.wbaltv
    .com/news/hea
    lth/Doc-Drink
    ing-64-oz-of-
    water-per-day
    -a-myth/-/937
    9230/19072736
    /-/tnb8huz/-/index.html#ixzz2N6pBgki9
    - 3/9/2013 11:46:40 PM
  • I've been struggling with my water lately. I used to have a great way to make sure I got it all in but as I got good at it, I quit. Lol. I would put rubberbands around my water bottle and as I finished a glass, I'd put it around my wrist. So by the time supper rolled around I'd make sure I had at least 3 around my wrist because I'd need all four before I got into bed. So that's my goal for this week. - 2/25/2013 8:44:44 AM
  • Keeping a few of the reusable water bottles with tops around is a handy way to make sure you get your water in! I try to keep one with me at all times. I'd rather mindlessly sip water than eat! - 1/23/2013 3:25:41 PM
  • When at home I keep a glass handy by the sink, even in the bathroom. Everytime I use the bathroom I drink an 5oz glass. It is perpetual. When I pass the sink I drink 5oz. Leave cold water in the fridg and in passing drink. Keep bottles of water EVERYWARE at work,car,purse, desk, livingroom.

    Pure unadalterated water is the best thing to get used too. It took alittle bit to get used too, like diet beverages...but once you do, its just imposible to go back tothe unhealthy drinks.

    Its best to try and think of water BEFORE FOOD. It has more importance and health bennys. - 1/1/2013 9:16:08 PM
  • One way I trained myself was to buy 3 oz dixie cups and challenge myself to drink 20 of them a day. I couldn't get myself to drink a large quantity at a time, but I COULD do them like shots. - 6/21/2012 2:07:11 PM
  • Getting enough water is really hard for me. I have noticed that the days that I teach, I gobble water like its going out of style but when I am home I have to force myself to drink. - 6/8/2012 10:48:42 AM
  • I am glad I read this article, I was surprised to learn that too much water ingested all at once was toxic. Glad to learn new things/ - 6/6/2012 5:25:03 PM
  • Too much water ingested all at once is also toxic.
    this is true.
    I was actually having issues and had to go to the dr's office to get looked at. - 6/1/2012 5:07:55 PM
  • I bet people drink more water than they realize. In the article it said…
    “Follow the example of a SparkPeople member: this woman put a water glass on her windowsill with 8 pennies on one side. Each time she filled up her glass and drank it, she moved a penny to the other side, until all the pennies were moved. Great reminder system!”

    If she is using what most people consider a regular size glass, it holds more than one cup of water. The glass I use holds 2 ˝ cups of water. I fill it half way with ice and it still holds 2 cups of water. So if I fill it up 8 times… like the lady mentioned in the article… I’m drinking twice what it recommended.

    At one time I knew how many pieces of ice from our ice maker melted down made half a cup of water. But we’re having to buy a bag every week to help our ice maker keep up this summer.
    - 6/1/2012 1:21:08 PM
  • TRANSFERFACTOR
    Secret? Water is the only ingredient that truly matters! LOL Get some! http://www.4lifet
    ransferfactor
    products.com - 6/1/2012 11:00:06 AM
  • MSNIKKI1973
    Soda Stream has been a life saver. I crave the carbonation of sodas more so than the sugar, so with the soda stream I just add the carbonation to plain water. If I want some flavor I either add a small amount of fruit juice or lemon juice. - 5/29/2012 11:41:34 AM
  • I have cravings that are unbearable, then if I think about it for a moment, I'm not really hungry, I'm thirsty, a 24 ounce bottle of water is exactly what I need. I also am prone to headaches, which often times is because of being dehydrated. - 2/20/2012 2:37:11 PM
  • FYI to bittersweet100 and anyone else. Drinking CranberryWater (7-1 ratio of Mountain Sun pure cranberry juice) mixed with 1 tbsp ground flaxseed every day is very healthful. Louise Gittelman calls it a "long-life cocktail" in her Fat Flush book, a must read. - 1/15/2012 11:13:39 AM
  • I always thought if a person went without water 3 days, they would die, as stated in this article. This is NOT true. My mother-in-law recently lived 9 days WITHOUT food OR water in hospice, and the staff said people can last as long as TWO WEEKS!!! - 1/15/2012 11:04:55 AM