Another article regarding the benefits of water

This is another article I found while surfing the net, edited a little bit here n there.

We all know that water is good for us, but often the reasons are a little fuzzy. And even if we know why we should drink water, it's not a habit that many people form. But there are some very powerful reasons to drink lots of water every day, and forming the habit isn't hard.The thing is that we don't focus on this habit. We end up drinking coffee, and lots of soda, and alcohol, not to mention fruit juices and teas and milk and others beverages.


Here are 9 powerful reasons to drink water (with tips on how to form the water habit afterwards):

1. Weight loss.

Water is one of the best tools for weight loss, first of all because it often replaces high-calorie drinks like soda and juice and alcohol with a drink that doesn't have any calories. Water has no fat, no calories, no carbs, no sugar. Drink plenty to help your weight-loss plan.

2. Healthy Heart.

Drinking a good amount of water could lower your risks of a heart attack. A six-year study published in the May 1, 2002 American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than those who drank less than two glasses.

3. Energy.

Being dehydrated can sap your energy and make you feel tired. Make a habit to drink up beyond your point of thirst. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated -- and this can lead to fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and other symptoms.

4. Headache cure.

Another symptom of dehydration is headaches. In fact, often when we have headaches it's simply a matter of not drinking enough water. There are lots of other causes of headaches of course, but dehydration is a common one.

5. Healthy skin.

Drinking water can clear up your skin and people often report a healthy glow after drinking water. It won't happen overnight, of course, but just a week of drinking a healthy amount of water can have good effects on your skin.

6. Digestive problems.

Our digestive systems need sufficient amount of water to digest food properly. Often water can help cure stomach acid problems, and water along with fiber can cure constipation.

7. Cleansing.

Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body.

8. Cancer risk.

Related to the digestive system item above, drinking a healthy amount of water has also been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer by 45%. Drinking lots of water can also reduce the risk of bladder cancer by 50% and potentially reduce the risk of breast cancer.

9. Better exercise.

Being dehydrated can severely hamper your athletic activities. Exercise requires additional water, so be sure to hydrate before, during and after exercise.


~~~How to form the water habit~~~

So you're convinced that water is healthier, but you'd like to know more about how to make drinking water a daily habit.

Here are some tips to do so

~The best is to form a routine: drink a glass when you wake up, a glass with each meal, a glass in between meals, and be sure to drink before, during and after exercise. Try to generally keep yourself from getting thirsty.

~Carry a bottle. A lot of people find it useful to get a big plastic drinking bottle, fill it with water, and carry it around with them all day. I like to keep a glass of water at my desk, and I drink from it all day long.

~Set a reminder. Set your watch to beep at the top of each hour, or set a periodic computer reminder, so that you don't forget to drink water.

~Substitute water. If you would normally get a soda, or an alcoholic beverage, get a glass of water instead.

~Exercise. Exercising can help make you want to drink water more. It's not necessary to drink sports drinks like Gatorade when you exercise, unless you are doing it for more than an hour. Just drink water. Furthermore, exercise is good for overall health and fitness.

If you're going to exercise, be sure to drink water a couple hours ahead of time, so that it will get through your system in time, and again, drink during and after exercise as well.

Well, water IS essential for all living things and hopefully after reading this article you can appreciate the importance of drinking water and make the effort to constantly keep yourself hydrated with water. Cheers!