It is currently a hype in the US: drinking 8 glasses of water a day is believed to be good for the skin, help the flushing of the kidneys, and work against constipation. That is why you see so many young people carrying a bottle of water everywhere they go.
However, there is no scientific proof in favor of drinking this much water, says Dutch Professor Internal Medicine Arend Meinders (LUMC). ‘The supposedly improvement of the skin condition has never been proven, and water is already absorbed in the small intestine before it reaches the colon.’
Still, water is needed to let the fibers in the intestines do their job, because these fibers need to swell. ‘But the effect is not accounted for by the drinking of water in itself.’
In normal circumstances, men need 3 liters of water a day, and women need 2.2 liters. The amount of water that we absorb from food is enough to compensate for the amount of water that we lose through the skin, breath, and stool. Whatever amount of water we drink in addition, will be used for the production of urine, which is needed in order to dissolve toxins and waste from the body. This water can originate from coffee, thee, alcohol, ánd water. If you are healthy and have a normal diet, gets enough water intake from half a liter per day, according to professor Meinders.
It is unknown where the water diet originates from. The US physiologist Heinz Valtin did an investigation to find out the origin, but did not succeed. So, what is the final conclusion of the water diet? Well, the hype is overrated. It is not bad to drink 8 glasses of water. You just urinate more frequently.
