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6 Smart Tips for Staying Hydrated Throughout the Day
Chances are that you aren’t drinking enough water. Use these strategies to increase your hydration and support your health.
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By Jessica MigalaMedically Reviewed by Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCESReviewed: June 24, 2022Medically ReviewedSkip soda and infuse plain water with fresh fruit for extra flavor and nutrients. Pixel Stories/StocksyEven if you’ve let your hydration habits slip (or you never glugged a ton of water in the first place), it’s never too late to get back on track and set yourself up to reap the health benefits of staying hydrated. It’s a worthwhile personal challenge. “Our bodies are roughly 60 percent water, so even the slightest bit of dehydration can negatively affect how we function, from energy levels to digestion and even immunity,” says Lisa Moskovitz, RDN, founder of the New York Nutrition Group in New York City.
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Staying hydrated will also improve your body’s ability to absorb nutrients, as well as keep your digestive system regular, Moskovitz adds. Adequate water is important for healthy gastrointestinal functioning, as it helps you stay regular by breaking down food and keeping stool soft, notes Mayo Clinic. If you’re not drinking enough, it pays to sip more.
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For instance, a review published in August 2018 in Skin Research and Technology suggests that increasing water intake has been shown to improve hydration of the stratum corneum, which is the outer layer of skin. Also consider the mental boost: Even mild dehydration is linked to more fatigue, less alertness, and a lower mood, per a 2015 report. What’s more, studies show that upping H2O intake may help adults with obesity, reduce body fat, and lose weight, per a review published in January 2019 in Nutrients.
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It’s clear that most adults generally don’t get enough water — on average, between 2015 and 2018, those in the United States drank about 44 ounces (oz) per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For healthy adults, the ideal amount varies based on factors including birth sex, weight, and activity level, though typically should be higher — about 91 oz for women and 125 oz for men, according to suggestions from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, though some of this can come from water-rich foods and other beverages.
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Moskovitz tells her clients to divide their weight in pounds by two — the result is the number, in ounces, she suggests drinking in water per day. For an adult woman who weighs 130 pounds, for example, the target amount of water would be 65 oz per day.
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(You can also use a hydration calculator for a personalized recommendation.)
Some of your water intake will come from food, some from fluids like coffee and tea, but most should be water. Know that, while rare, it is possible to drink too much water, Moskovitz says, and that can deplete sodium levels in the body, which are a necessary electrolyte for heart and muscle function. If you’re vowing to drink more H2O, you’re in good company.
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It’s a personal challenge that Jennifer Ashton, MD, chief medical correspondent of ABC News, took on, writing about her experience in her book The Self-Care Solution: A Year of Becoming Happier, Healthier, and Fitter — One Month at a Time. She decided to drink only water and (unsweetened) seltzer for one month to see if it could make a measurable difference in how she felt and looked, and if she could develop the habit for the long haul.
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“Simply put, water is the most effective way to hydrate your body,” Dr. Ashton notes. She adds that, unlike water, soda and sweetened beverages like juice drinks contain added sugar and calories that offer little nutritional value.
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Ready to up your beverage game? One word of advice before you start: Know your baseline hydration level before you adjust your water intake. “Challenge yourself to keep track of water intake for just a few days to get an idea of what your normal intake is like,” says Moskovitz — you might be surprised at just how much water you’re really drinking.
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Use an app (check out the recommendations below), or try a water bottle that paces your water intake by time of day, like a Hydromate water bottle ($29.95, HydroMate). That will give you a baseline (even if that reality check is, "I never refilled my bottle!") and help you calculate how much water you need to add to your routine.
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Here are six smart ways to drink more water — and make it tasty, too:
1 Hydrate When You Wake Up and Before Meals
If you put a water bottle in front of you, it’s easy to get lost in the day’s tasks and forget to take sips, but prioritizing hydration morning, afternoon, and evening is important. “Try to have about two glasses of water first thing in the morning and then one glass of water before every meal and snack,” says Moskovitz. There’s a double benefit to pairing food and water: “Drinking H2O also helps you slow down during meal time.
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If you start a meal with a very empty tummy, it’s easy to eat much faster and forget to thoroughly chew, which impacts how well food is digested,” she says. What’s more, it also may help you eat less.
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In a past systematic review, researchers found that increasing water intake helped dieters lose weight, but the habit did not help reduce weight in those who were not looking to shed pounds. Drinking more H2O may help dieters because it might suppress hunger, thus helping people eat less at that meal.
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Nonetheless, the researchers emphasize that the findings only suggest a link between hydration and weight loss. To prove that no other factors were responsible for the weight loss, more studies are needed. “The evidence for this association is still low, mostly because of the lack of good-quality studies,” they write.
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2 Wrap Up Your Day With Another Bottle of Water
We just encouraged you to drink water once you wake up, but an additional strategy to consider is to bookend your day with another beverage. Meaning: Make sure to have a bottle of water within two hours of waking. Then, two hours before bed, finish another.
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People who did so (drinking 550 milliliters, or about 18 oz, each time) were able to increase their H20 intake from 44 to 68 oz per day, according to a small study on healthy adults published in Nutrients in April 2020. Participants also benefited from a decrease in blood pressure, as water supported kidney function, allowing the organ to better remove excess sodium from the body.
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The additional water also aided in proper body temperature regulation, likely due to a boost in circulation. Make sure to time your intake so that you finish drinking around two hours before bed, otherwise you may have to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. This is one before-bed habit that will definitely boost your health (unlike scrolling through TikTok).
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3 Eat Your Water by Following a Produce-Heavy Diet
Fruits and vegetables have a high water content that will help you meet your daily quota, says Libby Mills, RDN, a Philadelphia-based spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “Fruits like cantaloupe, strawberries, and watermelon, and vegetables such as lettuce, cabbage, celery, spinach, and cooked squash are about 90 percent water,” she says. Dairy products, including milk, yogurt, and cottage cheese, are also good sources of water.
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4 Experiment With How You Drink Water to Maximize Enjoyment
For Ashton, she had to want to drink more. If you’re the type of person who thinks plain water is, well, too plain, experiment with different temperatures and tastes.
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“I knew that if I made hydration as palatable as possible, I’d be able to keep it up more easily,” she says. So she tried water with ice, without ice, at room temperature, and flavored with slices of fruit.
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Her preference ended up being plain cold water with no ice, but that doesn’t have to be yours. Try out different flavors by adding fresh fruit (like the discarded strawberry tops from breakfast), vegetables (cucumber slices), or herbs (fresh basil or ginger).
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5 Keep Track of Hydration With a Smartphone App
Make your water bottle your smartphone’s new companion. “Just like you keep your phone right next to you at all times, you should keep a BPA-free water bottle [within reach],” says Moskovitz. Make your phone work for you by using a well-rated, popular hydration-tracking app, like Water Reminder (free on Google Play), Water Tracker Waterllama (free on the App Store), or Water Drink Reminder (free on Google Play), which allow you to keep track of what you’re consuming.
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They will also remind you during the day to start swigging. If you don’t want to download an app, set a timer on your phone to go off every hour to remind you to pause for a few sips.
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6 Let Your Water Bottle Do the Work
Smart water bottles are the newest way to nudge you to drink. For instance, the HidrateSpark TAP ($19.99, HidrateSpark) will track the amount of hydration you need, adjust based on your activity, and then glow when it’s time to drink. For an even more high-tech approach, opt for the HidrateSpark PRO ($69.99, HidrateSpark), which uses Bluetooth to keep track of how much you drink each day and can send push notifications to your phone to remind you to keep your hydration goals on track.
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(Plus, research published in the journal Scientific Reports in March 2022 finds that it’s accurate at gauging your sips.) Neat, huh? NEWSLETTERS
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