Water In The Body

Time for reading: ~10 minutes Last Updated: November 16, 2022

CHAPTERS (Table Of Contents)

About 65% of the weight of the human body is water. Water is necessary for maintaining the health and vitality of every cell of our body. Every day, a person loses about 2.5 liters of water, so he needs to replenish his liquid reserves. Water provides metabolism, digestion and nutrition of all organs and systems, transport of nutrients, as well as protection of tissues and

Water in the human body

About 60-65% of our weight is water , and 70% of our muscles consist entirely of water . Every cell of our body directly depends on water and simply cannot exist without it. And this applies not only to humans, but also to all living organisms. Water is the most important substance for maintaining good health and healthy physical strength.

The total loss of water by the human body in one day is 2.5-2.6 liters. If broken down into parts, it looks like this:

daily water loss with urine is 1.5 l;
the skin is a source of excretion of 500 ml of water ;
400 ml comes out through the lungs;
with feces - 100 ml.

Water flushes toxins from vital organs, delivers nutrients to all cells in the body, provides a moist environment for the tissues of the ear, nose, and mouth, maintains a healthy (and much-needed) moisture level in the skin, nourishes our joints and muscles, and does more many useful and vital things. However, one of the most important properties of water is its ability to quench thirst and compensate for the lack of liquid in the living organism.

Deficiency of water in the body can lead to dehydration, a condition that occurs in every living being when its body experiences a lack of water to perform its usual functions. Even slight dehydration can rob you of your natural energy, cause you to feel tired and exhausted, and also cause headaches.

Water content in the human body

Body - 65%;
Skeleton — 22%;
Adipose tissue — 99%;
Blood — 83%;
Vitreous body of the eye - 99%;
Brain — 85%;
Tooth enamel — 0.2%.

Why does the body need water?

Nourish the joints

Pain in the joints is often the result of a lack of water in the body. For example, back pain - the spinal discs, which serve us to soften the load on the vertebrae, are half made of water . Thus, when the body feels a lack of water , these discs lose half of their functions, which leads to back pain. In other words, any organ, cell and body tissue needs water for normal functioning .

Reducing hunger

Specialists in the field of dietetics and doctors often note that the feeling of hunger is a side effect of lack of water in our body. Try to drink a glass of water on an empty stomach before eating , and you will immediately notice that the feeling of hunger and appetite will decrease significantly, and, accordingly, you will eat much less.

Improvement of digestion

About 30 minutes after you drink a glass of water , the body will begin to work faster, as if "heating" the water inside the body and raising your body temperature.

Weight control

As mentioned earlier, water is an important nutrient necessary for our body. Absolutely all chemical reactions that take place inside the body depend on water . For example, if you want to lose excess weight, water is even more necessary than under normal conditions. Without consuming a certain amount of water , it is impossible to lose excess weight, because fat deposits are a side effect of food consumption, improper nutrition and improper functioning of our body. When the body feels a lack of water, deposits (or, as it is commonly called in medicine, stones) begin to form in the kidneys, which is caused by the inability of the body to thoroughly and efficiently digest food and remove unnecessary waste products. If our kidneys do not work well and do not cope with their functions, then the liver enters the process of metabolism. In the event of water deficiency in the body, the liver, like the kidneys, "fails" in its work and begins to perform its functions to an incomplete extent. As a result, the fat burning process slows down, and we gain extra pounds and fat deposits.

And

Transport of nutrients and oxygen to cells.
Improvement of the metabolic process in the body.
Weight loss and getting rid of excess fat deposits in tissues.
Regulation of body temperature.
Protection of tissues and internal organs.

PREMIUM CHAPTERS ▼

Daily Rate Of Water Consumption (Premium)

The Amount Of Water Depends On (Premium)

Some Useful Tips (Premium)

What Water To Drink (Premium)

Drinking Water From Municipal Water Facilities (Premium)

What Can Get Into The Water (Premium)

Bottled Water (Premium)

Water Purificationat Home (Premium)

Daily rate of water consumption (PREMIUM)

This is a very common question, but, unfortunately, it is not easy to answer. There are many different factors that determine the amount of water a person should consume each day to maintain optimal health and well-being.

The old and generally accepted rate of water consumption is 8 glasses per day. One glass is considered to be equal to 8 ounces, so 8 glasses of water is 64 ounces (about 2 liters). However, as you know, every rule is not perfect. For example, a person weighing about 200 pounds (90 kg) needs several times more water than a small child weighing 10 pounds (5 kg).

Perhaps the best way to calculate your daily water intake is to use the following formula: 1/2 ounce of water times 1 pound of body weight. Let's calculate the amount of water per day on a concrete example. Suppose a person weighs 200 pounds. Thus, 200*1/2 ounces of water and we get a value of 100. That is, a person weighing 200 pounds needs to consume 100 ounces of water per day (approximately 3 liters). However, it is worth remembering that such a calculation is not categorical and mandatory, because the amount of water required for consumption per day depends on a large number of various factors. Below are some of them.

The amount of water depends on (PREMIUM)

Body weight - the greater the weight, the more water you need to drink every day.
The level of physical activity — playing sports, physical activity, mobile activity, etc. The more energy you spend during the day, the more water you need to consume.
The place of residence - the climatic zone within which a person lives also plays an important role. For example, if you live in a place with a hot and humid climate, then, of course, you sweat more (use the body's energy), and, accordingly, you begin to feel thirsty faster. So, for example, being at an altitude of more than 8,200 pounds (about 2,500 meters), a person may experience a more frequent need to urinate, unlike people at lower altitudes. Of course, any secretions from our body are, in a way, energy expenditure and fluid loss . Accordingly, the body must replenish the spent reserves of water, which leads to a feeling of thirst. The same is the case with the use of artificial methods of heating the air in the premises: when the temperature of a closed room (house, office) increases, the skin begins to dry, and the body begins to secrete water , which is necessary to maintain the required level of moisture of the skin. As a result, a person begins to consume more water to restore the body's water balance.

It is worth noting that about 20% of liquid (water) a person consumes in the process of nutrition together with the products he consumes for food.

Try not to consume a lot of tea, coffee, carbonated drinks and sugary waters. Coffee and tea contain caffeine, which has a diuretic effect and leads to water loss . Carbonated drinks and juices are quite sweet, so they do not increase the level of fluid in the body, but, on the contrary, lead to water loss and cause dehydration.

Some useful tips (PREMIUM)

In the morning, drink a glass of water on an empty stomach before eating. Water can be of any temperature: chilled, warm, room temperature.
Drink water in small portions throughout the day. Do not abuse water before going to bed.
Before leaving the house, be sure to take a bottle of drinking water with you .
Buy a good water filter .
Try to avoid drinking water from plastic bottles. It is better to buy a special bottle designed specifically for storing water .
Try adding a slice of lemon to water . Tasty and useful.
It is useful to drink raw, spring water . If the environment does not allow it, it is recommended to drink filtered or boiled water, but preferably fresh.
Since the microelements present in raw water are no longer present in boiled water , enrich it with microelements by adding unsweetened infusion of blackcurrant, raspberry, strawberry, and mint leaves.
If you drink boiled water , it is useful to pour it from glass to glass - to enrich it with oxygen.
Do not boil the remaining water in the kettle a second time, as such water is already harmful to the body.
Before use, stand the raw water in an open container for 8-10 hours.

What water to drink (PREMIUM)

Drinking water from municipal water facilities.
Boiled water.
Filtered or purified water.

There are other options for obtaining drinking water , however, the ones listed above are the most accessible and common. What is better for our body? Without a doubt, it would be wonderful if we could go down to a spring with crystal clear drinking water and enjoy the extremely clean water . However, unfortunately, in the modern world, this has become practically impossible due to the fact that most of the water sources on Earth are polluted. Due to the widespread use of artificial chemicals, industrial waste, and untreated sewage, the water resources of the Earth have become very toxic and dangerous for the health of living creatures.

All water on our planet is interconnected, be it seas and oceans, lakes and rivers, sources that are interconnected naturally or artificially.

Let's look at the 3 main types of drinking water sources.

Drinking water from municipal water facilities (PREMIUM)

Given that water contains a number of different elements and substances, it is simply impossible to get absolutely clean water (only H2O and nothing else) from an ordinary tap. All water outside of research centers and laboratories contains various substances, impurities and elements. Even distilled water , which is sold in plastic bottles in the store, ultimately contains carbon dioxide (CO2) obtained from the air that entered the container when it was filled with water . What's worse, such water very often also contains chemical elements and substances found on the walls of plastic (and any other) bottles.

What can get into the water (PREMIUM)

Soluble gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, radon, methane, hydrogen sulfide, etc.).
Metals and their compounds (lead, mercury, aluminum, arsenic, etc.).
Nitrates, nitrites and cyanides.
Synthetic and organic compounds containing pesticides used in agriculture, plastics, synthetic fabrics, dyes, additives, solvents (such as carbon tetrachloride and many other chemicals and compounds.
Trihalomethanes.

Bottled water (PREMIUM)

In the course of a number of studies and tests of the quality of bottled water , it was proven: water sold in plastic bottles is not much better than tap water . Scientists conducted laboratory analyzes of 10 different brands of bottled drinking water manufacturers . The presence of 38 different chemicals harmful to health and the human body was found in all product samples. Among them are the alkaloid caffeine, the analgesic acetaminophen, fertilizers, solvents, chemical enzymes used in the manufacture of plastic products, and the radioactive isotope strontium. According to experts, some samples of bottled water are no less polluted than tap water .

In summary, bottled water is not a reliable enough source of drinking water . It is not easy to follow the process of purification, filtration and treatment, not to mention whether all norms and rules of water treatment were followed during its production. Bottled water is a very convenient choice for travel. However, the best way to obtain safe drinking water is to purify and filter it yourself.

Water purificationat home (PREMIUM)

For most people, water filtration at home is a common, everyday and reliable thing. Your drinking water filtration and purification system will always depend directly on where you live. Choosing the best water filtration system requires a little research: just find out what's in your water system to get the best option for drinking water treatment . Also, you can choose special filters, such as flasks with an installed filter, into which water is poured, for quick purification of a small amount of water .