[canadacatman]

I would like some help with my water intake. I am 324 pounds down from 371.2. I use to drink 4-5 liters of water when I started loosing weight last year. About the same time I found out I had high blood pressure. I drank the same amount of water for the next year and my blood pressure with pills stayed a bit high.

Now about 2 weeks ago i started reading am I drinking too much water. And the things I found were YES and NO.

1. I found that drinking too much water increases your blood volume which in turn raises your bp.

2. I was on a website that when you put in your weight and other things it said I need close to 5 liters of water a day.

3.I was told that only 6-8 cups not glasses a day.

4. I was told that you need to multiply your weight by .66 ounces of water which for me means over 214 ounces a day.

5. Drinking too much water is bad for your kidneys and it will make your electrolytes go down and also a few other things.


Now after reading this I started drinking only 2 liters a day maybe a bit more. Now weird thing is my blood pressure is normal but I feel dry and I need more water and my pee is not white all day for the first time in 1 year.

Now I would like to know what one of these is correct. I know my body needs more water then others as my weight but how much is too much and bad for me.

Please I would like your opinion on this.
Thanks for any and all help....

[Porthardygurl]

IMO -

2 litres up to half of your body weight will suffice.. Anything beyond that and i would be concerned with an electrolyte imbalance.

[canadacatman]

Here is what I was told by someone a few minutes ago.

You didn't mention salt - this is important because contrary to the common belief, salt does not cause high blood pressure - combined with water, it helps to regulate the blood pressure. Therefore, by avoiding it, your blood pressure will go up.

The general accepted rule is to drink 8 - 10 glasses of water per day. This is because the body has no way of storing enough water to last throughout the day. When you don't drink enough water, the brain will tell the kidneys to store more salt because salt retains water.

To determine how much water to drink, divide your weight in half and this is the number of ounces of water you should drink per day. In your case, you should drink about 162 ounces. Along with drinking the water, you also need to eat 1/8 tsp of salt for every 16 oz of water. You can sprinkle it on food or eat it directly, but don't mix it with the water (dissolving it on the tongue for a few seconds and then washing it down with the water is the best way for most people).

162 oz is a bit much for a daily consumption, and you probably won't be able to do it. Therefore, do as much as you can (never drink more than 32 oz in one sitting).

To critique the above list -

#1 is wrong.
#2 is correct
#3 is either/or - a cup is 8 oz and when they talk in terms of "glasses" they mean 8 - oz glasses. Essentially, they're the same.
#4 is close - it should be "multiply your weight by .5 (or one half) to determine the number of ounces needed".
#5 Drinking a lot of water without eating salt will flush out salt and other minerals the body needs, causing a whole new set of problems.

High blood pressure is caused by chronic dehydration. The following links will help you in your quest to find the truth.