How Much Water Do You Really Need To Drink?

Cheryl writes:

"I’m hearing more and more about links between dehydration and reduced brain function. Does the news coverage of this topic amount to scaremongering, or do we all need to a concerted effort to drink more water?"

In the last ten years or so, a number of studies have looked at the effects of dehydration on various aspects of brain function, including concentration, memory, and processing speed—as well as more subjective things like mood and fatigue. And the research suggests that even relatively mild dehydration can have a measurable impact on how well your brain functions.

And that's not all. Dehydration can cause also headaches, constipation, and reduced athletic performance. 

Staying hydrated is obviously important. But you may be surprised to find out how much water it takes to do that.

Are you chronically dehydrated?

A while back, I got an email from a blogger asking me to contribute to a post he was doing on ways to drink more water.

“My reason for doing this post,” he wrote, “is the scary fact that 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. I'm hoping to create ‘dehydration awareness’ and provide inspiration for people to drink more water.”

(This blogger also happens to operate a website in which he sells lots of water-related products through affiliate links, but I’m sure that’s neither here nor there…)

I declined to participate in the post but I was curious about the claim that three-quarters of Americans are chronically dehydrated. A quick Google search shows this exact claim repeated all over the web (although not by any terribly reliable websites).

The original source for this “scary fact” appears to be a 2013 segment on a CBS affiliate station in Miami, in which they reported that “up to 75 percent of Americans may be functioning in a chronic state of dehydration, according to new research.”

No further details about this research are given, so there’s no way to check who did this research and what they actually found. And yet it seems to be in permanent circulation on the web as an established fact. Well, it may be established, but it is not a fact.

How much water does it take to stay hydrated?

The National Academy of Medicine is the institution responsible for setting our dietary reference intakes, or DRIs. But establishing a recommended daily water intake turns out to be really tricky, because there are so many variables, including your body size, the temperature and humidity of your environment, and your level of physical activity. These factors could...

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