Do You Drink Enough Water Each Day?

[badatmath]

Well the Mayo clinic one includes water from food. I would assume most of us are eating some fruit/vegetables.

But nope I don't drink that much water. It strikes me as a bad idea especially if you eat low sodium.

 

[braumeister]

Noted in post #1 as recommended by Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic and U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine…

Everyone has to determine their own optimum fluid intake, but I disagree with those numbers.

From the Mayo Clinic website: "Letting thirst be your guide is an adequate daily guideline for most healthy people."

 

[FlaMariner]

Does wine count? If so, I'm good.

 

[N02L84ER]

I drink 96 oz per day, 24 oz are tea and the rest is water. DH usually drinks 128 oz of tea.

 

[audreyh1]

Some drinks are diuretics - coffee and tea for example. So you probably need to make up for those.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Not unless it is mixed with fermenting grapes, preferably red.

 

[Midpack]

Everyone has to determine their own optimum fluid intake, but I disagree with those numbers.

From the Mayo Clinic website: "Letting thirst be your guide is an adequate daily guideline for most healthy people."

You may have missed I was talking about while engaged in physical activities - where thirst is definitely not adequate. And it’s interesting I found this on the Mayo website.

Dehydration also can occur in any age group if you don't drink enough water during hot weather — especially if you are exercising vigorously.

You can usually reverse mild to moderate dehydration by drinking more fluids, but severe dehydration needs immediate medical treatment.

Symptoms

Thirst isn't always a reliable early indicator of the body's need for water. Many people, particularly older adults, don't feel thirsty until they're already dehydrated. That's why it's important to increase water intake during hot weather or when you're ill.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dehydration/symptoms-causes/syc-20354086?p=1

 

[aaronc879]

Everyone has to determine their own optimum fluid intake, but I disagree with those numbers.

From the Mayo Clinic website: "Letting thirst be your guide is an adequate daily guideline for most healthy people."

I have always been told that if you are actually thirsty then you are already dehydrated.

 

[mcbraemer]

Where, exactly, does Coffee fit into the equation ??

I drink 3 or 4 12 oz cups of home brewed java for breakfast. No sugar and a splash of half & half. So that gets me to about 40 ounces of liquid in the morning.

I drink about 8 oz of water filtered thru our Fridge dispenser at lunch and again at dinner. If we go out for a meal, I order Sweet Tea with a travelin' cup to go. I don't generally drink booze when dining out -- Charleston County taxes the alcoholic drinks heavily......make the tourists pay.

So I'm probably drinking 60 oz of non-alcoholic liquid refreshment per day. And I don't feel dehydrated at all.

I believe these 'round number' dictated figures are probably too generic for an individual, like the Body Mass Index.

I ask the same question about liquids like coffee, tea, juices and pop ... all of which are comprised of 90-99% water. I'm not a medical or dietician but it seems to me that the amount of water contained in these and other liquids count towards daily water intake. Yes, caffeinated drinks will make you pee more quickly after ingestion, and carbonated drinks can be "bad for you" for non-related reasons; but water is water.
Or am I wrong thinking?

 

[Cayman]

I try to stay well hydrated. My doc says urine should be clear. I fall short sometimes, he indicated that dehydration elevates my stroke and clot risk.

 

[Dash man]

I drink 80 oz. of green tea a day. Currently Sencha.

If my thirst requires more, I break out the herbal teas. 32-64 oz's of those on a hot day like today. I don't drink herbal because of sleep issues, that's never been a problem. I just don't want to overdue caffeine consumption.

I used to drink a lot of green tea until I had a kidney stone. My urologist said to stop drinking any tea, especially green tea. Apparently it’s high on oxylates, which contributes to kidney stones.

 

[Mr. Tightwad]

I used to drink a lot of green tea until I had a kidney stone. My urologist said to stop drinking any tea, especially green tea. Apparently it’s high on oxylates, which contributes to kidney stones.

Plenty of foods have oxylates too. Black tea also has more than green. You can also reduce the oxalates consumed by not overbrewing.

My observation is that some people are prone to kidney stones. I've eaten plenty of the high oxalate foods and drink my tea and have never experienced a kidney stone.

 

[Dash man]

Plenty of foods have oxylates too. Black tea also has more than green. You can also reduce the oxalates consumed by not overbrewing.



My observation is that some people are prone to kidney stones. I've eaten plenty of the high oxalate foods and drink my tea and have never experienced a kidney stone.

After stopping drinking all tea and spinach, I haven’t had a repeat kidney stone. That was an experience I’d prefer to not repeat. [emoji23]

 

[Teacher Terry]

I drink 2 cups of coffee every morning and then it’s water only which ends up being 10-12 glasses. Since moving to Reno 26 years ago I have to drink constantly. It’s dry here and 2 medications I take cause dry mouth. I use the bathroom every hour or two. No I don’t have diabetes.

 

[sengsational]

It would seem to me that an implantable could easily be designed, but hydration just doesn't seem to be that big of a problem.

I have found it much easier to drink more water once I installed the under sink RO system. No worries about contaminants and tastes great. I've added a thing to it that puts back a few basic minerals and normalizes the pH.

It would be easy for me to monitor the number of ounces per day, but I've never done it. I'm sure it varies a lot, depending on exercise and on sauna use. I keep a huge jug of water in the room adjacent to the sauna, and liberally consume it with sauna use.

 

[audreyh1]

I drink 2 cups of coffee every morning and then it’s water only which ends up being 10-12 glasses. Since moving to Reno 26 years ago I have to drink constantly. It’s dry here and 2 medications I take cause dry mouth. I use the bathroom every hour or two. No I don’t have diabetes.

Yes, I prehydrate when traveling to mountain country with its extremely low humidity. If I’m good at drinking extra water every day for the first few days, then I avoid the minor nose bleeds. At some point my body seems to adjust via normal thirst.

 

[WhenIsItTime]

I just did 11 days backpacking and hiking ~7 miles a day at elevation of 6,500-12k feet in ~90 degree heat. I kept track of my water intake, which was the only beverage I had available. I averaged 4-5 liters a day (incl. 1-2 electrolyte powders). Urine was clear and frequent enough. 3 liters is a lot for me in normal life.

Pre-hydrating was very helpful while hiking. I'd drink at least a liter before hiking to avoid carrying the weight.

 

[doneat54]

I try to drink more during the day and have gotten into the practice of not getting into the car without my water bottle. I have developed a healthy habit of just drinking water when I drive.

More significantly for me, and this may not make sense for some; I drink 2x 20 oz. bottles of water between dinner and bedtime. It has made a huge improvement in my sleep. I used to struggle nightly with restlessness and pain issues related to a herniated disk in my back. Yes, I have to get up to pee 2-3 a night, but I was doing that before anyway. I sleep much better, consistently, since I started this.

 

[swakyaby]

I’ve always had a hard time drinking plain water past 8 oz and preferred 8 oz coffee in the morning and a can of soda in the afternoon. So I bought a sodastream last week, and my fluid intake has noticeably improved. Creating soda is so easy and convenient now, and I’m glad the container is reusable so I’m not discarding so much plastic bottles and aluminum cans. But the CO2 canisters are the real cost.

 

[latexman]

I re-hydrate every morning immediately after waking (6ish) with 12 oz. of coconut water followed by 12 oz. of water. Three 12 oz. mugs of black tea takes me to 1-3 p.m. I usually have two more 12 oz. drinks before bedtime at 10 p.m. Usually I have 1 water and a diet soda, but sometimes one is a Sam Adams Seasonal, and less frequently one is a gin and tonic. So, about 84 oz. a day.

 

[audreyh1]

I’ve always had a hard time drinking plain water past 8 oz and preferred 8 oz coffee in the morning and a can of soda in the afternoon. So I bought a sodastream last week, and my fluid intake has noticeably improved. Creating soda is so easy and convenient now, and I’m glad the container is reusable so I’m not discarding so much plastic bottles and aluminum cans. But the CO2 canisters are the real cost.

We (2 of us) replace 2 CO2 canisters about every 6 months. Since we return the old ones to swap them out, it’s 1/2 price, about $15 each. So $30 every six months. We think that’s cheap.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Me too. I’ve had a soda stream for 18 months and I drink 1-2 liters of seltzer per day though not every day. The CO2 canisters are returned for a $15 refund. My local Wegmans carries the CO2.

 

[swakyaby]

We (2 of us) replace 2 CO2 canisters about every 6 months. Since we return the old ones to swap them out, it’s 1/2 price, about $15 each. So $30 every six months. We think that’s cheap.

I have not been able to locate a local source to swap out the CO2 canisters so far. I currently have 2 full canisters, so I have some time to search further.

 

[YVRRocketSurgery]

Personally, I'm a believer that I need to stay well hydrated to feel healthier/better overall. I try to drink water regularly but it slips my attention.

When I was working, I was drinking water more regularly because it'd be a bit of a routine to take a quick 30sec/1min break to give my eyes a rest from the screen and run to the kitchen/lunch room to fill my glass/water bottle.

Nowadays, I have to consciously think about drinking a glass of water in order to do it regularly other than during a meal. I'm also out of the house more so it's kind of less convenient since I'd prefer not to buy water nor lug around a water bottle while on the move. Water also gets a bit boring so I occasionally squirt some flavoring into it like Mio Sport (not good value but I don't care ).

After going out for a night of drinking or a rec team night, I'm pretty deydrated the next day and it usually takes me a few days to feel rehydrated.
I also find it a challenge when traveling. We were in Europe for a cruise last month and it was pretty hot and humid so I was sweating up a storm. It's kind of hard to tell where and what is a safe water fountain/supply so even though I hate buying water, we had to do it regularly. We did bring our own water bottles so we could fill them when we could.
Back on the ship, I think I typically ended up drinking 4 or 5 glasses of water during dinner in addition to regularly grabbing water from the dispensers in the buffet area.

 

[Midpack]

I re-hydrate every morning immediately after waking (6ish) with 12 oz. of coconut water followed by 12 oz. of water. Three 12 oz. mugs of black tea takes me to 1-3 p.m. I usually have two more 12 oz. drinks before bedtime at 10 p.m. Usually I have 1 water and a diet soda, but sometimes one is a Sam Adams Seasonal, and less frequently one is a gin and tonic. So, about 84 oz. a day.

I literally just started doing this a few days ago, I suspect it’s a good habit that will help my hydration on active days and not. Too soon old, too late smart.