What is water, but two parts hydrogen and oxygen? A simple amalgamation of two basic elements. Yet, it’s nothing short of a wonder as to how a substance so simple, is needed by our body for its very survival! While it is common knowledge that 3/4th of the world is water, but did you know that our body is also almost 75% water?
Drinking an adequate amount of water is known provide our bodies with amazing health benefits ranging from detoxification to prevention of pain in the joints! Now let’s take a look around us, how many times have you ignored that bottle of water which sits quietly on your desk? Plenty of times, right! But would have ignored it, if we told you that most of the degenerative diseases that occur in our bodies as we age are caused due to the lack of water in our bodies!
Why should I drink water?
Since our body is 75% water, most of our cellular processes need water to function properly. Even most of our blood is water! Water helps our body to detoxify itself of any toxic substances and also prevents their build up in the body; it helps our body to maintain its pH balance and its core temperature, thereby protecting us from a horde of diseases that can take over our body due to the absence of water!
What’s more, drinking water can also help one lose weight, gain a clear complexion, healthy hair and so on… The number of health benefits derived from drinking an adequate amount of water are countless!
Is drinking 8 glasses of water a day, enough?
Long gone are the days when drinking 8 glasses of water was advised! Now-a-days, the water you consume should be adequate if not proportional to your size, weight and height. Eight glasses of water is not enough in hot and humid places like India, as the body loses weight to sweat and inadequate consumption of water can cause dehydration to set in! In such conditions you have to drink water depending on your weight and size.
Our body is an excellent indicator of when it needs something and when it’s had enough, the body will let you know when you have had enough water and also when you need to drink water!
What are the health benefits of drinking water?
Drinking water, be it any form, whether mixed with another substance such as lime juice or sugar, or whether it is in a hot or cold form, is nevertheless beneficial to the body! Following are just some of the health benefits that our body derives from drinking plain good ‘ol water
Water helps our body maintain its pH balance:
A pH balance between 7.35 - 7.45 is considered ideal for one’s body. A pH balance is the measure of one’s body alkaline levels. Water is essential for maintaining the body’s pH balance, as it doesn’t let the acidity increase. An increase or decrease in the body’s pH balance lets the micro-organisms in the blood multiply, divide, change shape and form; weakening our immune system which threatens our overall health levels as it exposes us to many diseases!
Kidneys need water, not stones!
Kidneys are organs which are primarily responsible for filtering the body’s toxic substances, out of the body by means of Urine. Water is needed by the Kidneys to perform this filtering, as water is a solvent and helps in transporting and chemically breaking down the substances found within the body and the blood stream! A lack of water in the body for a prolonged period of time leads to accumulation of salts and other such minerals within the kidney which leads to kidney stones!
Water helps in boosting metabolism:
It is true that water helps you lose weight as it affects your metabolism. Adequate consumption of water increases your body’s metabolic rate. A high rate of metabolism helps you burn your calories faster, thereby helping you lose or maintain your body weight! Water is essentially a carrier of nutrients, enzymes, vitamins and minerals to the various parts of the body, which then go about the process of systematically breaking down the proteins, vitamins etc, water is also needed to filter out the toxic and extra substances not needed by the body!
Drinking water is also known to help in having a clear bowel movement; where as lack of water in the body causes constipation!
Water helps you detoxify!
Since water is a solvent, it helps flush out the toxins found in the body and the bloodstream. With fewer toxic substances present in the body, its health quotient is considerably upped. A clear complexion along with healthy hair is just one of the main indicators of a person’s good health amongst many others!
Water maintains the body’s core temperature:
Water makes up about 75% of our body, thus it is needed to regulate our body’s core temperature! In hot and humid conditions such as India, the body sweats a lot to lower its temperature. Similarly in cold conditions where insulated clothing makes you sweat or indoor heating deprives your body of moisture, either ways your body’s fluid intake will increase. Therefore in both hot and cold conditions, your body needs water to regulate its core temperature as a shift in this temperature sees the onset of cold and fever.
Drinking adequate water helps the body prevent from succumbing to serious conditions:
A regular and adequate intake of water in our bodies is essential to protect it from various heart diseases, as water helps maintain viscosity of blood and plasma within permissible levels, thereby allowing for proper blood flow to the heart.
Daily adequate intake of water is important for preventing painful joint conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Water in such cases is needed to act as a lubricant to prevent the rubbing of the joints against each other which can lead to wear and tear of the joint in question!
