Meeting Hydration Requirements Without Actually Drinking Water

Some people go nowhere without a bottle of water in tow. They are the lucky ones. For the rest of us, making sure we are drinking the recommended amount of water each day is chore-and one that often goes unfulfilled. I, for one, rarely reach for a glass of water. For years, I worried that I was failing to properly hydrate myself, and made frequent resolutions to drink at least some water each day. According to a report published by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (the "Institute"), however, there was no need for me to be so concerned. It turns out that you can be properly hydrated without drinking water, as long as you are smart about the "water replacement" foods and beverages that you consume instead.

The Institute's report, entitled Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate, refutes many popular myths about proper water intake and hydration requirements. Foremost among these, the Institute found that you do not have to drink at least eight glasses of water a day to be well hydrated. While the Institute found that people who were properly hydrated consumed significantly more than 64 ounces (eight glasses) of fluid per day (women, 91 ounces, and men, 125 ounces), much of that does not come from water, but from other fluids and from food. Dr. Lawrence Appel, who headed the Institute's panel conducting the research, explained that "While drinking water is a frequent choice for hydration, people also get water from juice, milk, coffee tea, soda, fruits, vegetables and other foods and beverages, as well." In fact, you are likely to consume approximately one liter of fluid from the food you each day, and more if you choose your food wisely.

So what kinds of food and drinks should you consume to meet your hydration requirements if you aren't particularly keen on water? Here is a guide for the water-adverse:

1. Eat Your Vegetables. Vegetables top of the list of water rich foods. Leaf, stem, root and sprouting vegetables generally contain 90 to 95 percent water. Cucumbers, for instance, are 97 percent water, tomatoes and zucchini are both 95 percent water, and eggplant is 92 percent water. By eating one cup of cooked broccoli, you consume almost one cup of water.

2. Drink Fruit Juice or Indulge in Fruit Salad. Fruits are right behind vegetables in terms of water content. Tropical fruits generally contain 80 to 85 percent water, citrus fruits, 83 to 89 percent water, and soft fruits, 84 to 90 percent water. Peaches, for instance, contain 87 percent water, and a cup of watermelon contains almost a cup of water. Fruit juices are 95 percent water.

3. Dairy Products-Not Just a Source of Calcium. Everyone knows that dairy products are a primary source of calcium and protein. What is less well know is that dairy products are also a great source of water. Milk, for instance, contains 88 percent water, and yogurt contains 80 percent water.

4. Don't Discount "Dry" Foods. Even dry ingredients, such as beans, grains, rice and pasta, become water rich foods when cooked. This is because they act as sponges and absorb the water in which they are prepared. A cup of rice contains nearly a cup of water. Red kidney beans are nearly 77 percent water, and therefore supply more than 3/4 of a cup of water per cup. A cup of couscous provides half a cup of water.

5. Even Baked Goods Count. What could be drier than baked goods? Most people would be surprised to learn that even baked goods contribute to their daily water intact. A slice of whole-wheat bread, for instance, is about one-third water, and a tortilla is slightly more. While poultry is generally 70 percent water pre-cooking, a roasted chicken is still 65 percent water. Similarly, while seafood is 70 to 75 percent water pre-cooking, baked salmon is still 62 percent water.

6. Conventional Wisdom Overturned-Caffeinated Beverages Do Contribute to Your Daily Water Intake! Though coffee and tea are 99 percent water, for years, the conventional wisdom was that caffeinated beverages caused you to lose fluid, and therefore could not be counted in your daily water intake. The Institute's report refutes that claim. The Institute found that although caffeine acts as a diuretic, the effect is transient and drinking caffeine does not cause a deficit of total body water. Accordingly, the Institute concluded that caffeinated beverages can contribute as much as noncaffeinated beverages to a person's daily water intake.

Sources

Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate, available at http://www.nap.edu

National Academies News Release, Report Sets Dietary Levels for Water, Salt, and Potassium to Maintain Health and Reduce Chronic Disease Risk, February 11, 2004, available at http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=10925

Water and Nutrient-Rich Foods, The Sensible Way to Top Up Your Daily Water Requirement, available at http://www.brita.net/water_and_nutrient_rich_foods.html

Jane E. Brody, Must I Have Another Glass? Maybe Not, a New Report Says, N.Y. Times, February 17, 2004, at F1.

Dian A. Dooley, Ph.D., Water, Water Everywhere, available at http://www.islandscene.com/Article.aspx?id=2472

Molly Siple, Juicy Foods: Need Fluid Fast? Drink Water. Otherwise, Foods With a High Water Content Can Provide Taste, Texture and Variety as They Contribute to Your Body's Reservoir, available at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NAH/is_7_35/ai_n6116720