Water is essential for life and daily function. It is evident that it is needed to maintain good health. However, drinking water regularly may also aid in weight loss along with a diet and exercise program. It has never been exactly clear why water helps weight loss but the likely reasons are due to hunger control and its role in satiety.
Health Benefits
Water is your body's main chemical component and makes up 60 percent of your body weight. Every system in your body depends on water to function properly. Water flushes out toxins in your vital organs, carries nutrients to your cells and keeps skin looking fresh. It is also needed to maintain good digestion and regulate temperature. Not drinking enough water can lead to dehydration, which stop your body from carrying out normal functioning.
Weight-Loss Evidence
Water can be used as an appetite suppressant, thus leading to weight loss, a study done in August 2010 reveals. The study was conducted by Brenda Davy, Ph.D. over a period of 12 weeks and has shown that people who drank two cups of water prior to meals -- three times per day -- lost 5 lbs. more than those who didn't. Davy states that drinking water may aid in weight loss because it contains no calories and fills the stomach up, causing you to simply eat less.
Substitutes for Soda
Soda and sugary drinks are high in calories and low in nutritional value. According to a study presented at the annual Obesity Society meeting in October 2006, overweight women that substituted water for sugary drinks while dieting were able to lose weight more than women who didn't. The study was performed on 240 overweight women, ages 20 to 50, who followed popular diet programs, such as Atkins and the Zone. Before the study began, these women drank about two sugary drinks per day. The women who replaced all sugary drinks with water lost five more pounds per year than dieters who didn't and those that drank more than four cups of water a day lost an additional 2 lbs.
Daily Needs
Your water needs depend on many factors including activity level, your health and where you live, MayoClinic.com reports. In general, doctors recommend drinking eight to nine cups a day. There are a few common ways to calculate how much water you need each day. MayoClinic.com states the average urine output is 1.5 liters a day. You lose almost an additional liter through breathing, sweating and bowel movements. If you consume two liters of water per day along with your normal diet, you'll replace the fluids you lost. Another approach to water intake is to follow the 8-by-8 rule, which states that you should drink eight 8-oz. glasses of water each day.
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