How to find how much water you should drink

Developed by Medindia Content Team | Calculator reviewed by The Medindia Medical Review Team Last Updated on Feb 10, 2022

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Important Water Facts:
References
How much water should I drink based on your weight?
How much water should I drink a day by weight calculator?
How much water should I drink per day?
How do I calculate how many litres of water I need to drink?

Do you make the mistake of waiting until you feel thirsty before drinking water? Thirst isn�t a signal from your body indicating that your body water level is depleting. It is a warning that you are dehydrated and you need to drink up soon. By the time you feel thirsty your body would already have lost 1 -2 % of its water.(1✔ ✔Trusted Source
Problem: Thirst, drinking behavior, and involuntary dehydration.

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,2✔) Thirst a very subjective sensation sensation helps maintain the body�s fluid balance.(3✔ ✔Trusted Source
The Utility of Thirst as a Measure of Hydration Status Following Exercise-Induced Dehydration.

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) Drink water at regular intervals so you don�t get dehydrated. On an average, a sedentary adult should drink 1.5 liters of water per day(4✔ ✔Trusted Source
Water as an essential nutrient: the physiological basis of hydration.

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) however �the recommended total daily fluid (water plus other beverages) intake is 3 liters for men and of 2.2 liters for women.(5✔ ✔Trusted Source
How much water do we really need to drink?

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)

This calculator helps you determine approximately the amount of water you must drink each day to avoid dehydration. Remember, this is only an estimate. The actual amount one needs depends on many factors like exercise, illness and fluid content in dietary intake. Pregnant and breast feeding women need to drink additional fluids to stay hydrated.

Important Water Facts:

❖	Human body is made up of almost 60%-70% water.(6✔)
❖	Small amounts of beverages like Tea, Coffee or Alcohol does not cause dehydration as previously believed.(7✔ ✔Trusted Source No evidence of dehydration with moderate daily coffee intake: a counterbalanced cross-over study in a free-living population. Go to source )
❖	Drink a glass of water before a meal. I It not only controls your eating and helps to keep your weight in healthy range but also helps to protect your stomach wall from the harmful effects of digestive acids.(8✔ ✔Trusted Source Effect of Pre-meal Water Consumption on Energy Intake and Satiety in Non-obese Young Adults. Go to source )
❖	Drinking enough water helps you to lose weight because without water the body can't metabolize fat adequately.(9✔ ✔Trusted Source Increased Hydration Can Be Associated with Weight Loss. Go to source )
❖	The symptoms of dehydration include headache, stomachache, behavioral changes, depression.(10✔ ✔Trusted Source Adult Dehydration Go to source )
❖	Cognitive functions like concentration, memory, and critical thinking decline when there is over 2% body water loss�occurs.(11✔ ✔Trusted Source Dehydration and Cognitive Performance. Go to source ,12✔ ✔Trusted Source Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Sodium, Chloride, Potassium and Sulfate. Go to source )
❖	22%-30% loss of total body water can lead to coma and death.

References

Problem: Thirst, drinking behavior, and involuntary dehydration.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1602937/)
Wolf A.�Thirst; Physiology of the Urge to Drink and Problems of Water Lack.�Charles C Thomas Publisher; Springfield, IL, USA: 1950.
The Utility of Thirst as a Measure of Hydration Status Following Exercise-Induced Dehydration.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31703247/)
Water as an essential nutrient: the physiological basis of hydration.
(https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2009.111)
How much water do we really need to drink?
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20356431/)
Nicolaidis S. Physiology of thirst. In: Arnaud MJ, editor.�Hydration Throughout Life.�Montrouge: John Libbey Eurotext; 1998. p. 247
No evidence of dehydration with moderate daily coffee intake: a counterbalanced cross-over study in a free-living population.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24416202/)
Effect of Pre-meal Water Consumption on Energy Intake and Satiety in Non-obese Young Adults.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30406058/)
Increased Hydration Can Be Associated with Weight Loss.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27376070/)
Adult Dehydration
(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555956/)
Dehydration and Cognitive Performance.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17921464/)
Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Sodium, Chloride, Potassium and Sulfate.
(https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10925/dietary-reference-intakes-for-water-potassium-sodium-chloride-and-sulfate)
Sawka M, et al. Human water needs. Nutrition Reviews 2005;63:S30.
http://www.med.navy.mil
http://www.unh.edu
Exercise and fluid replacement. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2007;39:377.

Dr. Rajan Handa

DEHM,BEMS,MDEH, NDDY, MDAM, Ph.D. Honorary, DNHE, Doctorate of Natural Medicine® / DNM®, Executive Therapist
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How much water should I drink based on your weight?

“In general, you should try to drink between half an ounce and an ounce of water for each pound you weigh, every day.” For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, that would be 75 to 150 ounces of water a day.

How much water should I drink a day by weight calculator?

Most people need to drink roughly half of their weight (in pounds) in ounces. For example, a 200-pound adult needs approximately 100 ounces of water each day. Of course, your water needs will increase with any physical activity. So you'll need to add 12 ounces of water for every 30 minutes of daily activity.

How much water should I drink per day?

The U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine determined that an adequate daily fluid intake is: About 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) of fluids a day for men. About 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) of fluids a day for women.

How do I calculate how many litres of water I need to drink?

Divide your weight by 30. The answer is the number of litres you should be drinking per day. So, if you weigh 60 kilos for example, you should drink 2 litres of water a day, whereas if you weigh 80 kilos, you should drink 2.6 litres (2 litres and 600 ml) of water per day.