How much water is
enough?
In the past it was suggested
that everyone should drink eight 8-oz. glasses of water
each day to stay fully hydrated. While that's a good start,
the minimum amount of water you need, depends on your body
weight. A more accurate calculation, is to drink an ounce
of water for every two pounds of body weight. For example,
a 140-pound person needs a minimum of 70 ounces of water
each day. It's easy to see that the old rule of drinking
eight 8-oz. glasses of water - accurate for someone who
weighs 128 pounds -- falls short of what many of us need.
When you
drastically increase your daily water intake, it does take
a few days for your body to adjust. At first, you'll find
yourself making more trips to the bathroom than you had
been, but you'll get back to normal once your body adjusts
to receiving the proper level of hydration.
Is your water Safe?
Now that you know
your daily requirement, what type of water should you drink?
Bottled? Filtered? Straight from the tap? All water contains
some impurities, but according to the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), the United States has one of the safest water
supplies in the world. The EPA is responsible for setting
(and enforcing) national drinking water standards for public
water systems. Still, it points out that drinking water
quality varies across the country, depending on the condition
of the source water from which it is drawn and the treatment
it receives.
Natural contaminants are deposited
in all water as it flows through streams, or filters through
rock or soil. Other contaminants are man-made substances,
such as those discharged from factories, applied to crops,
or used by homeowners in their yards, and eventually make
their way into the water supply. If you're unsure about
the safety of your drinking water, you can check your community's
EPA-required "consumer confidence report" for
information on the source of your local drinking water and
its contaminants. Check the EPA's
Website at to locate your local information.
Bottled Water Facts
and Myths
If the thought
of drinking tap water (along with its possible contaminants)
gives you the willies, you might want to opt for bottled
water. If so, keep the following in mind:
Bottled drinking water
Bottled drinking water is
usually water from a city water supply. It meets the EPA
standards for purity but that doesn't necessarily guarantee
it's free of all contaminants (no more than your own city
water supply is "pure"). Although
some people prefer the taste of minerals in water (iron,
for example), remember that at certain levels minerals are
also considered contaminants.
Spring Water
"Spring water,"
sounds pure and healthy, but it's just water that comes
from naturally flowing springs. It does not have the minerals
removed (a selling point for some people), but the downside
is that spring water is not yet required to be analyzed
for chemical and bacterial levels.
Distilled Water
Distilled
water has all the metals (both harmful and helpful) removed.
Most people find this makes it taste flat.
Purified water has either been distilled or forced through
a membrane in a process, known as "reverse osmosis,"
which reduces the amount of minerals it contains but may
leave organic impurities.
So what's the safest
way to drink water?
Although
bottled water may be a step above what comes out of your
tap, carbon filtering produces what is probably the purest
drinking water. The carbon filter removes most of the carcinogens,
pesticides, chlorine and lead, as well as bacteria (such
as giardia, an intestinal parasite you definitely do not
want to have visit you) that are commonly found in drinking
water.
*This
newsletter is designed for informational purposes only and
has not been evaluated by the FDA. This information is not
intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice,
diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified
health provider with any questions you may have regarding
a medical condition.
