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* Water and Body Fluid Balance Water is one of your body's most essential elements. In fact, you can't live without it. The human body will only survive one week without water while it can survive for up to six weeks without food. Your body is actually comprised of about 60 percent water – it makes up 75 percent of your brain, 70-75 percent of your muscles and 22 percent of your bones. All of this water serves several important functions in your body, for example it: Regulates body temperature. Protects and cushions vital organs. Helps convert food into energy. Helps carry nutrients and oxygen to all the cells in the body. Cushions the joints. Helps with the elimination of waste. Improves intestine health and helps prevent constipation. Flushes the kidneys of the waste products of metabolism. * Water loss and dehydration Every day, water is lost from the body through sweating, exhaling and elimination. At normal activity levels, most people lose two to three cups of water per day just through perspiration. Another one or two cups is lost through the body's waste removal systems. Athletes or those with high activity levels lose even more water. Therefore, to ensure that the body can function properly, water must be replaced regularly. When your body loses a lot of water, it becomes dehydrated. In the early stages of dehydration, your body begins to overheat and your blood volume begins to decrease. You may begin to feel tired. If dehydration gets worse, you may experience increased tiredness, loss of appetite, flushed skin, heat intolerance, impatience or irritability, problems speaking, stumbling and dizziness. Severe dehydration causes muscle spasms, delirium, sunken eyes, numb skin and deafness. At it's worst, dehydration causes seizures, coma and death. Thirst and sweat are both indicators that you need to top up your body's water reserves. However, it's not necessary to wait for these signals before you take a drink. Research has shown that older people in particular tend not to feel thirsty, even though they need fluid. Drinking fluids regularly throughout the day is the best way to ensure that your body has enough water for its needs. How much is enough? Fluid requirements vary greatly between individuals. The amount of water your body needs depends on your age, weight, diet, activity level and the climate in which you live. CalorieKing.com recommends consuming at least 50 fl. oz (1500 mL) of fluids per day, which is at least 6 glasses. The most reliable way to tell if you are getting enough fluids is to check the color of your urine. If it is pale yellow, almost clear, then you are getting enough fluids. If however, your urine is dark in color and has a strong odor, it is an indicator that you need to drink more fluids. Tea, coffee, juice, milk and soda are all okay in moderation and do count towards your daily fluid intake, but it is best if most of the fluid you consume over the day is water. Water is cheap and easily accessible, plus it does not add extra calories. Some drinks, such as tea, coffee, cola and alcohol, contain caffeine, which is a diuretic. This means that these drinks actually cause your body to lose water. While the occasional glass of juice, cordial or soda is fine, these drinks can add many extra calories without helping to satisfy hunger, and can also increase your risk of tooth decay. If you don't like the taste of water, try flavoring it naturally with slices of lemon or orange or fresh mint leaves. Sometimes you may require more fluids than usual, for example: When exercising try to drink about 8 oz of fluid every fifteen to twenty minutes during your exercise session. If you are concerned about fluid loss, weigh yourself before and after exercise. If you have lost more than two percent of your body weight, you need to top up your fluids. During summer you may sweat more and therefore lose more fluid. During hot or humid weather, you may need to increase your fluid intake by up to as much as one quart per day. If you live in a hot climate, you may need to increase your fluid intake all year round. If you consume lots of salty foods, you may find that your thirst increases so you will need to drink extra fluids. The body needs extra fluids to flush excess sodium through the kidneys. Pregnant and lactating women require more fluid than normal. If you have kidney stones, a bladder infection, diarrhea or a fever, you may benefit from extra fluids. Speak to your doctor about your fluid requirements if you have any of these conditions. The water content of foods Water is also supplied to your body through the foods that you eat. For instance, an average slice of bread is about 40% water, while meats are up to 60% water. One cup of rice is about 70% water and a tomato is 93% water. If you are looking for a refreshing fluid replenisher on a summer's day, an orange, apple or slice of watermelon will provide you with plenty of fluids, as will a fresh garden salad with lettuce, tomato and avocado. Note that even though oils are fluids, they have no water content at all. Even though many foods do contain high water levels, it is not necessary to include foods if you tally your fluid intake throughout the day. Soups do provide plenty of fluid but most of your fluid intake should be in the form of beverages, not foods. Water and Weight Control Water is an important tool for those who are watching their weight. Firstly, it has no calories, sugar or fats and is therefore a great way to quench your thirst without adding to your daily calorie total. Secondly, many people often mistake thirst for hunger so, if you drink plenty of water throughout the day, you promote a feeling of fullness, which can help in your efforts to manage your calorie intake. If you are exercising regularly as part of your weight control program, extra water will also be of benefit. Most of the weight losses of the first several days of dieting will result from water loss – around 70 percent of total weight loss. This corresponds with the depletion so the body's carbohydrate stores and the reduced intake of salt. Crash dieting can cause even great water losses, up to 80 percent of the total weight loss - particularly if water and fluid intake is restricted. In effect the body is being dehydrated. It should be noted that no extra fat is lost when water or low calorie fluids are restricted. In the same way that fluid losses can accentuate weight loss, so they can accentuate weight gain. Many sudden weight gains are in fact only due to fluid retention, whether due to saltier meals or other physiological reasons. These gains are usually only temporary. Unfortunately, the scales do not distinguish between weight changes from water, fat or muscle. While weekly weighing may eliminate this dilemma, many people find that the daily weighing ritual is a reminder that weight control is a daily event that requires daily attention. Weigh yourself at the same time of day and in similar clothing or without clothes and always on the same scales. What are diuretics? A diuretic is a substance that draws water and salt out of your body, making you go use the bathroom more frequently. Some experts have suggested that tea, coffee and cola have a negative effect on our fluid levels because they contain caffeine, which is a natural diuretic. Allan Borushek, dietitian and health educator, suggests that the diuretic properties of caffeinated drinks are minimal enough to be of little concern and that the important issue is to consume plenty of fluids throughout the day, whatever their source. Recent research has found that the minimal diuretic effects of caffeine do not compromise overall fluid levels in healthy women. Medications containing diuretics are sometimes prescribed to control high blood pressure, fluid retention or edema, a condition where water-logged tissues are caused by hormone imbalances or heart or kidney failure. In these instances, you should discuss your fluid requirements with your doctor. *

Wow this is a great article.
Thanks I need the last paragraph of this the most.
Letha

thanks 4 the info!