Water is the primary component of the human body. As a matter of fact, our body is composed of 55 to 75 percent of water, depending on the body mass index. Regular and adequate consumption of water has a broad range of health benefits. As a bonus, water contains no sugar, carbohydrates, and other additives commonly found in fruit juices and other beverages.
The quantity of water that you consume every day plays a paramount role in maintaining a healthy body. Experts recommend drinking eight to ten glasses of water a day to stay hydrated and maintain good health.
Proper hydration is essential because every cell in the body needs water to function properly. Now, here are the top ten reasons why you should drink more water:
Improves Mood
Researches conclude that mild dehydration (happens when you’ve lost too much water in your body without replacing it) can negatively affect your mood and ability to think.
A study published in the Journal of Nutrition found that dehydration can take a toll on your cognitive function and mood. A good indicator of the level of your hydration is the color of your urine. Lighter color means good hydration and vice versa.
Treats Migraines and Headaches
If you have migraine or headache, the first thing that you should do to get some relief is to drink lots of water. Dehydration often causes, unbeknownst to many, migraines and headaches.
A study published in the European Journal of Neurology concludes that increasing water intake reduces the intensity of a headache and total numbers of hours of headache duration. Before you prepare you mattresses and your bed bases for a nap or a good night’s sleep, make sure to drink lots of water first.
Helps in Constipation and Digestion
Increasing water intake improves the gastrointestinal tract functions. This prevents constipation and helps digestion. Insufficient amount of water in the body often leads to constipation because the colon pulls water from the stool to maintain hydration, thus making them harder and difficult to excrete.
Sufficient amount of water also boosts your metabolism and helps the body break down food. This promotes regular bowel movement and helps the digestive system work well.In particular, warm water is good for your digestive health.
Aids Weight Loss
Contrary to the popular belief that water increases your weight, it helps you lose weight. Clinical trials found out that drinking eight ounces of water before meals suppress appetite which helps you lose weight easier.
Another exciting fact is that water also helps in increasing the rate at which body burns fat and promotes the elimination and breakdown of fat cells. But don’t forget other diet tricks and proper exercise in addition to drinking more water.
Relieves Fatigue
If you always feel tired even though you’re not doing anything, there is a high chance that your consumption of water is inadequate which makes the body function less productive. In fact, the first sign of dehydration is fatigue.
When there’s insufficiency of water in the body, the volume of blood drops which causes the heart to work harder to pump the oxygenated blood out of the bloodstream. Major organs will not effectively function too.
It Protects Our Joints and Cartilage
Enough supply of water keeps the cartilage around your joints supple and hydrated, which ensures that our joints stay lubricated.
Water also protects our tissues and spinal cord, keeping us healthy from inside out. Cartilage, a rubbery material that coats our bones, is made up of 85 percent of water. To keep your cartilage healthy, you need to keep hydrated by drinking enough water.
It Helps Us To Stay Focus and Sharp
Be warned that dehydration causes brain tissue shrinkage! So if you are not drinking enough water, your brain tends to work harder to perform at the same level.
One study even found that students who brought water on their exams did better. While it’s still not clear if drinking water had anything to do with the higher score, it does not hurt to try it.
It Might Protect Us Against Cancer
A research found that higher water intake lowers the incidence of bladder cancer. One possible reason is that frequent urinating prevents the build up of bladder carcinogens. Good hydration may also reduce the risk of breast and colon cancer.
It Takes The Edge of Hangover
Dehydration is also caused by drinking alcohol which leads to hangovers. Drinking a glass of water with each alcohol that you sip is a good way to offset dehydration and the miserable headache the next day.
Sickness Fighter
Sufficient water intake aids not only dehydration but also decongestion. This helps the body bounce back when you are feeling under the weather.
Takeaway
The benefits that we can get from drinking enough water are countless. There’s a big reason why our parents always nudge us to drink water every day, and by now you should know better. Water is indeed, the real fountain of life.
Author Bio:
Rachel Minahan is a bubbly interior designer who is also a self-confessed health aficionado. She loves traveling to different cities and countries whenever she has time. She is also fond of scouting the latest trend in health and beauty, fashion, and design. Rachel admits that she is a writer by heart and loves sharing her thoughts about fashion and design, traveling and health and beauty and shares it with her readers.