Hard to believe it, but our bodies are made up of about 60 percent water, with every last system in our body depending on H2O to function.
However, water is lost from our bodies constantly. This can be caused by a myriad of everyday activities, from an afternoon of pumping iron in the gym to an evening of watching tear-jerking movies with the girls.
Indeed, we can lose up to four cups of water a day through breathing alone.
By sufficiently replenishing our body's supply with those famous eight glasses a day, we can treat ourselves to a whole range of biological benefits. Here are a few of the main advantages that H20 can take care of for us.
1. Aid natural weight loss. Water plays a key role in the metabolic breakdown of proteins and carbohydrates. Try a cup of hot water and lemon to remove toxins from your system and speed up weight-loss plans. When drunk with green tea, hot water also speeds up the metabolism, which allows you to burn those undesired excess calories at a faster rate.
2. Keep your concentration sharp and avoid fatigue. Even mild dehydration -- as little as a 1 to 2 percent loss of your body weight -- can sap your energy and make you tired. Water pumps life back into the brain to keep you one step ahead of that formidable to-do list.
3. Keep joints lubricated and reduce the likelihood of physical injury. Water keeps our organs and joints moist. This permits the passage of nutrients and waste between the blood vessels and the rest of the body to keep your limbs moving liberally throughout the day. 4. Reduce the chance of catching colds and flu. Perhaps the most important and easiest form of prevention of the common cold is sufficient fluid replacement. Fluids flush out harmful impurities and toxins in our bodies and aid in the production of mucus. 5. Maintain youth. According to Dr. Sang Whang, the author of the "Reverse Aging" book, the aging process is basically the accumulation of acidic wastes built up within the body which water can easily flush out. This means the best anti-aging moisturizer on the shelf canactually be found bottled in the fridge. 6. Keep your digestive system in top working order. Water flushes out the waste products from your body. So important is water to the digestive system that hydrotherapy treatments are now available where warm water is pumped directly into the colon to re-boot its essential functions. 7. Keep your heart healthy. Not drinking enough water can be as harmful to your heart as smoking, according to Dr. Jacqueline Chan. She found in her study at Loma Linda University in California that by drinking more water, healthy people without any history of heart disease, stroke or diabetes reduced their risk of dying from a heart attack by half or more. 8. Banish dry eyes. Many factors can cause dry eyes and skin. However, one of the most overlooked solutions is drinking water. Drinking plenty of water, not soda, juice or other beverages, can help ease the discomfort of dry eyes and skin, according to experts.
9. Prevent constipation. Drinking water has almost immediate effects against such bowel issues -- particularly during pregnancy. 10. Maintain the body's pH balance. The body's pH balance is essential to prevent and cure disease -- an all-round winner. So don't shell out increasingly precious pennies for a grande double skinny hazelnut frappaccino every four hours, or expensive creams and supplements. Take a regular trip to the kitchen tap and enjoy some good quality council juice -- on the house.
