Drinking up can boost your wellbeing and energy levels – here’s how to make sure you have enough fluids.
A recent poll by drinks company Robinsons found the average adult gets through just three and a half glasses of water daily, with one in 20 of us not drinking any water at all on a typical day.
But how much do you really need? The Government’s Eatwell Guide advises six to eight glasses of fluid daily. But that doesn’t alwalys have to be plain water. Milk, herbal teas and broths all count towards your fluid intake. Even tea and coffee are more hydrating than dehydrating, according to nutrition consultant Ian Marber. ‘While they are diuretics, which means they encourage faster loss of fluid, a cup of tea or coffee is mostly made up of water – so it can still count towards your daily fluid intake,’ he says. To find out how hydrated you really are, check the colour of your pee – it should be a pale straw colour. Any darker and it’s time to head to the water cooler. Try our tips for upping your fluid intake:
1. Log it
One of the main reasons we don’t drink enough is that we simply forget. The Waterlogged app, free, monitors how much you’re drinking and reminds you to get up and have regular glasses of water.
2. Make it more interesting
Find plain water boring? Add a twist of lime or ginger, try fizzy water, drink it warm with a slice of lemon, or infuse fresh mint leaves or a herbal teabag in hot water.
3. Get juicing
Fruit and vegetable juice contains a lot of natural sugar, which is bad for your teeth, so don’t overdo it. But you can have one glass a day, diluted with some water, to help notch up your fluids.
4. Eat your water
Although some fruits and veg, like watermelon and cucumber, have a high water content, you’d need to eat an unrealistic amount for them to contribute to your fluid intake for the day. But soups and broths do count.