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Is 8 Glasses of Water Per Day Overkill?

Posted by timothy on from the drink-drink-drink dept.

An anonymous reader writes: "David Harris reports in his science news that the American Journal of Physiology today published a study dispelling the 8x8 myth. That is, the recommendation to drink 8 eight-ounce glasses of water per day has no scientific evidence behind it. The paper also mentions the risks of drinking too much water and explodes some other urban myths of water drinking such as the 'thirsty means dehydrated' and 'dark urine means dehydrated' myths."

4 of 90 comments (clear)

  1. caffeine/alcohol by TRACK-YOUR-POSITION · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The part about water in caffeine drinks counting towards you're recommended intake struck me as most contrary to my own anecdotal expereience--it seems like whenever I drink anything caffeinated, I'm thirsty for water shortly afterwards. I suppose this discrepancy is either in my head, a bizarre artifact of my own physiology, or a misinterpretation of the abstract linked to here.

  2. Partially switching from Diet Coke to Water by daviddennis · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I used to drink about six cans of Diet Coke a day, plus one Diet Coke from the soda fountain at lunch.

    A friend I respected suggested that I consider drinking more water and less soda. He claimed that I would lose weight (I was 265 pounds at the time) and feel better.

    What I discovered is that I did lose weight, although not enough to significantly impact my appearance, but more to the point I felt better - I was generally more alert in the afternoons, and after a while just a few sips of a Diet Coke would give me more energy (when I needed it) than a whole one would previously.

    It looks like caffinee becomes steadily less effective as more of it is used, so the simply exponent of abstaining from it and limiting its intake worked well.

    So I would recommend something like this to anyone trying to become more healthy. I started losing weight at a good clip, incidentally, when my new job responsibilities made me less sedentary. Annoying but good for me in the long term.

    D

    1. Re:Partially switching from Diet Coke to Water by AJWM · · Score: 3, Interesting

      You can certainly build up a tolerance to caffeine (and similarly, exhibit withdrawal symptoms from it).

      As far as losing weight goes -- I've heard that caffeine affects your metabolism such that it kicks blood sugar levels temporarily higher. This would do two things -- the higher blood sugar level prompts conversion of the sugar to fat, and when it drops again, it makes you hungry. That in turn would tempt you to eat more, and so on.

      I know I tend to eat less when I drink water rather than my usual several cans of diet pop (alternate Diet Coke and Fresca -- I don't need that much caffeine).

      --
      -- Alastair
  3. dilutional hyponaetremia by funky+womble · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It's recommended that people taking certain recreational pharmaceuticals put a limit on their water consumption, since some have an anti-diuretic effect.