How much water do we really need to drink to stay healthy?
Deep water running and aqua aerobicsare excellent cardio workouts without the impact. Working out in the water is one of the most therapeutic and enjoyable fitness activities you can do as it builds cardio, strength and resistance whilst being easy on your joints.
You’ll be relieved to hear that this isn’t another beauty article recommending that you need to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day which will magically smooth out your wrinkles and promote youthful glowing skin.
Controversially, there’s some argument that little or no scientific evidence exists to back up that particular theory.
I don’t know about you but personally, I’m no big pure water drinker and struggle to down 3 glasses each day. I even need to think about doing that (apart from when there’s a heatwave or I'm working out)!
A couple of years ago I downloaded an Ap on my phone to help me reach the widely touted 8 glasses per day target. But I found the constant notifications irritating and a tiny bit stressful so I uninstalled it after a few days. So far, I’ve lived to tell the tale and my middle-aged skin hasn’t dried out - yet ...
Good News! Tea, Coffee & sugar free drinks all count!!!
According to the NHS “Eat Well” website we should drink 6 to 8 glasses of “fluid” a day. Water, lower fat milk and sugar-free drinks, including tea and coffee, all count if you’re not keen on pure water. Hurray!
There is plenty of evidence that water intake is essential for your health as it makes up 60% of the human body transporting nutrients, aiding digestion, regulating temperature, etc.
Some of water’s benefits include:
1. Water keeps our kidneys working.
Our kidneys remove the waste from our bodies. They filter about a half cup of blood every minute, removing wastes and extra water to make urine. They help control our blood pressure, so they’re crucial to keeping our bodies running smoothly. Good water intake can help to keep them working efficiently.
2. Water can help prevent headaches, naturally.
Going without water for too long causes dehydration headaches for some people - I’m one of them. In 2004 study on the effects of water on headaches, participants experienced “total relief” from their headaches within 30 minutes of drinking water.
So, on busy days when you’ve been rushing around and forgotten to have a drink– try reaching for a glass of water or take a few swigs from your plastic-free water bottle before reaching for the painkillers for natural relief.
3. Water can help improve fitness
Deep water running andaqua aerobicsare excellent cardio workouts without the impact. Working out in the water is one of the most therapeutic and enjoyable fitness activities you can do as it builds cardio, strength and resistance whilst being easy on your joints.
4. Swimming
Low impact swimming has been found to improve long-term physical and mental health and is a great option for anyone who wants a low sweat, impact-free cardio workout.
5. Warm Baths
Taking a warm bath provides an increasingly rare chance to take a break from our busy lives and have a bit of “me time”. Just a few precious minutes of peace, tranquillity and solitude can be a sanctuary at the end of a hectic day and beneficial to overall wellness.
The ritual of a warm bath gives us the opportunity to escape from technology and lie back and relax, reflect, meditate, listen to music, or read a book.
Evidence shows that adding mineral rich bath salts to your bath water can be therapeutic, especially combined with relaxing pure essential oils such as lavender. Sea salt can naturally promote relaxation, relieve inflammation and sports injuries, as well as arthritis, back pain, skin conditions, cold and flu.
6. Sea Bathing
Apparently in the 18th century British doctors prescribed sea bathing as a cure for a myriad of ailments and it became very popular activity. Brighton was a sea bathing hot spot around this time for the perceived health benefits of its very salty sea water, endorsed by George IV - an Influencer of his time. In 1784 he regularly visited Brighton on his doctor’s orders to undergo sea-water treatment for a bout of ill health.
Sea bathing” is a term I first heard when I visited my parents’ homeland as a child, the Caribbean island of Dominica. Young and old swore by their daily sea baths, flocking to the beach and immersing themselves in the warm Caribbean Sea whenever possible which they swore by to keep themselves fit and healthy. And why not? Sounds good to me.
7. Water Aid
There’s no getting away from the fact that water is a vital resource that many of us especially in the West, take for granted. Sadly, in some landlocked countries exacerbated by little or low rainfall, the resulting lack of clean drinking water impacts the equality, education and health of millions of people and its scarcity can be a matter of life and death.
Find out more at Water Aid where you’ll also find details of how you can help improve lives, so others can instinctively turn on a tap and get water just like us.
Did you know that Dominica with a population of only 70, 000 has the highest percentage of centenarians per capita in the world? One woman reached the ripe old age of 128! Maybe there’s something in the water? …
Until next time …
