I agree!! I've known more people who've gotten into health trouble drinking too much water, than too little. Your body is pretty good at telling you what it needs.

All health benefits (or lack) of drinking water aside, it does help with losing and maintaining weight which is a health benefit in itself.

I was a boredom eater. I would sit in front of the computer while working or just relaxing and eat because I wanted something to do. I replaced all of that with water. It really saps that urge to eat something that I still get so strongly.

I don't even keep track of how much I drink—all of this seems to be working for me anyway.

We learnt in class it's a myth that you need to drink 8 glasses of water a day.

Well, technically it's true, thats how much you need, but you get almost all of it if you eat right - the proper amount of fruits and veggies contain enough water so that you can live healthily off much less water.


However, I still think the more water you drink, the better. I just don't see how it CAN'T help.

This isn't news to me. As has been stated already, hydration is important but we get a lot of what we need from food. And all beverages count as hydration (it's a myth that caffeine pulls out more fluid than it adds).

Moreover, the 8x8 prescription did not come about based on any research at all. Someone seems to have just made it up.

Staying hydrated is important, especially when our bodies are overheated, and I do think drinking water can help people for all kinds of reasons. But the notion that we MUST X many ounces of water a day is based in no evidence I have ever found. So, if you like drinking water-- drink! And if you don't-- don't worry about it!

Has anyone else noticed feeling more hungry after drinking a lot of water? Everyone says that staying hydrated reduces hunger but I actually feel more hungry if I drink water between meals. Drinking water with meals, however, does make me feel fuller.

It works both ways! I naturally drink a lot of water and love the stuff, so it's not an issue for me. But I have a friend who drank mostly herbal teas and developed kidney problems and became severely dehydrated and to drink (per her doctor) 6 glasses of water a day. She is very small so they told her she did not need 8 but definitely needed water in addition to the teas.

The study neither proves or disproves anything. I am sure we can get by with little water if we must. And the water industry line I get but who still buys bottled water? I thought with all the knowledge on how it effects the environment that fad was waning. I don't personally know anyone who does that anymore. I was guilty of it but committed to buying no more water ages ago. I carry a glass bottle to fill from a tap. I do realize many people in the world do not have such access a thus my above statement is only directed to a small slice if our world.
I know I love water it is my favourite drink. I have great skin. I am regular. Yes still fat so does not cure that. Lol I feel great when I drink water. I rarely have headaches, maybe once per year and get a cold once per year. I cannot prove a correlation of course. But all good things can be overdone.

Hmm. My Dr wants to me to drink a lot and keep my kidney pretty well flushed. I don't drink a huge amount - 8-10 cups most days. I only have the one kidney though, so maybe that makes a difference.

oh thank goodness for this thread, this study, and for kaplods!
the hardest part of losing weight for me has always been drinking all that water
I drink much MUCH more than the average person
and fitting in all that water meant basically drinking nothing but water, and I just am not a water person!

I love water, always have. Plain from the tap, my favorite drink. My mom said from the time I was tiny I always wanted water. I think every body is different, my husband and my daughter rarely drink water. I find I get more thirsty if I drink anything other than water.

The only time I paid attention to anyone telling me to drink more water was when I was pregnant and had pregnancy induced hypertension. The doctor kept telling me to drink more water. I was over a gallon a day but it never helped. I drink when I am thirst and sometimes that means a 32 oz german beer mug glass full of ice cold water for breakfast, lunch and dinner along with however many glasses I want in between.

I don't drink water for health benefits I drink it because I am thirsty. So studies have never phased me on how much water to drink or not to drink.

I drink a lot of water - about half plain and half lightly flavored. I think to a certain extent, it's a habit. Getting up to get some water, and then the natural consequence a little while later of getting up to use the restroom is helpful at work because otherwise, I might end up just sitting at my desk for too long a time.

I live in a very dry climate now, but I drank about the same amount when I lived on the East Coast and there was a lot more natural humidity.

I suspect that to a certain extent, your body gets used to processing a usual (for you) amount of water. I know when I have significantly less that I normally do, I feel lousy. But I don't know that I'd feel great if I tried to drink way more than that either.

I tend to think that this obsession with drinking lots of water is a health fad. On the other hand, I know I'm currently NOT drinking enough water for the amount I'm sweating out and the amount of thirst I feel.

I am sticking to a minimum of 8 glasses per day. Somedays especially furring summer I have a gallon per day. If I go under my minimum I get headaches, weight more the next day from water retention, I assume. I also get ver constipated. My husband weights 70 lbs more than me, i think he should drink more than the 8 minimum, it's hard to tell with his urine. He takes b complex which turns his pee bright yellow.
I also had a lot of lower back pain do to lack of water

I agree with that article. There have been follow up studies that have shown that the original study only takes into account that we need 8 glasses of water with NO other factors. Tea has water, coffee has water, many of our foods have water. Of course we need to stay hydrated but to that extent, no. Remember you CAN drink too much water causing an electrolyte imbalance in your cells and discomfort to significant damage. My choice is G2 to help keep that balance in check.

I must go through about 10 cups of tea & coffee a day (mostly tea). I cannot remember the last time I drank any water, I think it was during particularly strenuous exercise. I have absolutely no signs of dehydration and I feel fine. My body has been telling me my whole life what it wants to eat & drink and I've been ignoring it. Only in the past 2 months when I've actually started paying attention to it have I felt better and started losing weight.

I think it's no coincidence that I recall this frenzy of absolutely HAVING to drink 8 glasses of water a day (nothing else, just water, oh and none of your dirty tap water, it must be mineral water) popping up in the early 90s, at the same time as the bottled water industry became so huge.

To me, it's nothing but folklore: marketing that has crept insidiously into medical advice.

Basically, I think this makes more sense: drink fluids, you need them. What you need will depend on your height / weight / composition / diet / exercise / hormones / environment / genetics. Your body will usually keep you right - that's why it has hormones to send signals to your brain to articulate your need for... whatever it is. If you like water, drink it. If you like tea, drink it (this doesn't really apply to stuff like coke that's full of sugar ).