Thursday, April 03, 2008

Drink more water for health?

NO.

Can we puh-leeeze lay that old folklore to rest now?

Every time I read some amateur nutritionist or armchair athlete telling people to force themselves to drink eight glasses of water per day, I want to scream. Swinging a dead cat around your head would be just as efficacious for your health, and probably better for your triceps and biceps.

This is not to say that you shouldn't replenish sweat and electrolyte losses during exercise. You should. And the losses are probably more than you think, unless you do a weigh-exercise-weigh procedure. But otherwise, there's no need to force down that 64-ounce jug of water on your desk every day. And no benefit, either.

6 comments:

LBTEPA said...

That's a relief.
And another reason I'm never going back to weight watchers!

Spokane Al said...

This is good news. Perhaps if I back off a bit on the water I can get a better night's sleep without having to get up ever couple of hours to make the cold, dark trip to the bathroom.

Herself, the GeekGirl said...

I'm still trying to find the middle ground. I either swill it all day and then piss like a racehorse all day, or I forget to drink it completely and get headaches.

Julia said...

Your opinion is based on...?

Nancy Toby said...

Here's the reference:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080402/hl_nm/water_health_dc_2

Refeereed study published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Fe-lady said...

I don't force that amount down, but actually CRAVE it-but I live in the desert and need it with my 2xaday workouts currently.
Plus I get headaches if I drink too much beer and don't re-hydrate! HA! :-)