[Rubiehart]

Hey everyone,

I just wanted to know if drinking water right before i went to sleep is bad. A docter told me that i should be drinking 1 oz. of water for every two pounds. I thought that was ALOT of water, but sometimes during the day i just get lazy and don't do it. So right before i go to bed i find myself drinking six 16.9 oz Sparkletts bottles. I just wanted to know if any of you guys thought this might be unhealthy and why. One more question that i didn't ask my docter...Why is water beneficial for me...besides that dehydration thing. I am obviously on a diet...but they always say drink lots of water...is there any other reason besides dehydration???

[LLV]

There's nothing unhealthy about drinking water, regardless of when you drink it. Sure, drinking water late at night may cause you to get up and down all night long, but the only thing really "unhealthy" about that is disturbances in sleep. But I drink water all day long and I still get up at least once or twice a night, so I'm used to it.

[LynneA]

I don't know of any reason why drinking water before bed would be bad for you, well it might disrupt your sleep when you are up for the loo every 30 minutes .

The benefits of drinking water are debated by many. Some claim it helps weight loss, some claim it doesn't. Water does help flush out any toxins/fats that might be in your system and also helps rid the body of excess sodium (hi water retention!) which will help with bloating. I am an advocate of drinking lots of water, since I changed my lifestyle a year ago I drink at least 2 liters of it every day. I have noticed less bloating, my skin seems softer (hydration) and I believe it's helped my energy levels.

Just my opinions hope they helped.

[Heather]

Here's a link to a site that investigates urban myths, discussing a water-related topic.

http://www.snopes.com/medical/myths/8glasses.asp

I'm not saying you shouldn't drink water, but the evidence that we need 8 glasses of water a day to remain hydrated seems to be lacking.

Although I don't have the link for it offhand, one of the more interesting parts to this debate is what counts as water. The original doctor who raised the 8 glasses a day issue stated that the water could come from other sources -- including caffeinated drinks and foods (like fruits and veggies). However, his caveat seems to have turned into its opposite!

Anyway, again, I'm not saying that drinking water is bad, and it may have benefits beyond hydration too! But water can come from many sources and we may not need as much "straight water" as we are sometimes told