While health experts do not all agree on the
exact amount, many recommend that people
drink half their weight in ounces (oz.) of water
every day!!! That’s a lot of water!! For the
average 200 pound man that’s 100 ounces of
water!! If you do the math (hint: there are 8 oz.
in a cup), that’s 12.5 cups of water a day!!
If you’re thinking, “Yeah, but I’m a kid,” you
should know that the recommendations for kids
are also pretty high. In general, it is suggested
that toddlers drink 2 to 4 cups of water per day
(16-32 oz.); 4-8 years old, 5 cups (40 oz.); 9-13
years old, 7-8 cups (56-64 oz.); and 14 and up 8-
11 cups (64-88 oz.) PER DAY, every day!! That’s
why your folks are always pushing you to drink
water. But why do we need so much water?
Where does all that water go!?! Well the quick
answer to that might be found in your
bathroom. Lol. But before you go there that
water is put to AMAZING use by your body!!
About 60% of your body is made up of water.
That’s right, more than HALF of you IS water!!!
And not only are you mostly water but your
body requires water for many body functions. In
fact to function properly, ALL of your organs as
well as your 27 trillion cells NEED water! What
follows is a list of some of the many things your
AMAZING body can and will do with all that
water if you drink it!
Your body uses water to dissolve many
minerals and nutrients to make them
available for your body to use.
Your kidneys use water to regulate fluid in
your body and without sufficient water they
cannot work as they should.
Your body uses water for your joint tissue,
called cartilage, for lubrication which allows
for flexibility and shock absorption.
Drinking water keeps your mouth clean and
helps form saliva and mucus. Saliva is
important for the digestion of food. Water
also keeps our mouth, nose, and eyes moist.
Your blood is about 90% water and to flow
smoothly and carry vital oxygen to all parts
of the body it needs plenty of water.
Your body uses water to keep your skin
plump and healthy.
Your body uses water to regulate body
temperature. Water that is stored in the
layers of your skin comes to the surface to
cool you off when your body heats up. You
know this as sweat.
Your body uses water to help maintain
proper blood pressure. Less water in your
blood makes it thicker which makes it more
challenging to move through your body
increasing the pressure.
Your airways need water to stay open and
pliable.
That’s a LOT and that’s not even everything!!
Your AMAZING body also uses water to cushion
the brain, spinal cord, and other sensitive
tissues. And we all know how important your
nerve system is!!! Your nerve system controls
every other system in your body.
That’s also why it’s so important to ensure that
there is no distortion to your nerve system caused
by vertebral subluxation. Your family chiropractor
can help you with that. He or she will check your
spine to make sure none of the individual spinal
bones are altering the function of your nerve
system.
Then your AMAZING body can keep doing all the
incredible things it does with water and with
everything else!
—By Judy Nutz Campanale, DC, ACP
