Watering Our Brain

woman drinking water - "Dehydration takes its toll on our brains by increasing stress hormones, which in turn reduces cognitive function. Dr. Amen recommends drinking half of your weight in water ounces daily—in other words, if you weigh 160 pounds, drink 80 ounces of water daily."

@joliefille (3690)

Philippines

January 17, 2013 7:48am CST

Not pouring it directly over our head!

It's been said that we should drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. Today I stumbled upon an article by Daniel G. Amen, MD, author of Use Your Brain to Change Your Age which says that to boost our cognitive function and improve our memory, he recommends drinking half of our weight in water ounces daily—in other words, if you weigh 160 pounds, drink 80 ounces of water daily. It just makes me wonder why my former colleagues during the night shift work years ago preferred cups of coffee over water. Coffee has been thought to be the stimulant. I think office workers who are huge coffee drinkers should consider Dr. Amen's recommendation.

2 people like this

20 responses

@mariaperalta (19073)

• Mexico

17 Jan 13

I drink lots of coffee here, but I also drink 5-6 cups of water per day as well. Drs. orders... Have a great one there. Drink up !!!

2 people like this

@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

17 Jan 13

Sometimes I do lose track of how many glasses I have drunk.

Drinking too much can be detrimental to our health, too.

@Mavic123456 (21898)

• Thailand

17 Jan 13

is coffee not considered water? if it is water does it mean plain water, not juice or tea? but yes, this is a great research by Dr. Amen, and maybe we don't really need to box ourselves to 8 glasses of water, we should consume what our bodies need.

If we are thirsty it means our body needs water. Maybe we also should basing from our activities.. a runner couldn't have just 8 glasses of water for the day for they sweat and the water in the body should be replenish.

Thanks for this... great one.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

19 Jan 13

Coffee has water, yes. But caffeine can be dehydrating. Then I thought back to my office days when a lot of my colleagues would consume countless cups of coffee just to stay awake. I thought it was counterproductive to consume more coffee at working hours. They can stay awake but does it necessarily mean that their cognitive function can get them through their tasks. Of course a runner or someone who does more physical workout does need to replenish their bodies more with water.

@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

I love coffee, too, but I am more of a tea drinker. My idea of a relaxing night is drinking hot cafe Americano at Starbucks with friends but, well, I can't do that every night.

@Mavic123456 (21898)

• Thailand

19 Jan 13

ahhh yes that's right it may be dehydrating. i love coffee myself and yes, this could be very bad for the health the bad and side effects of coffee.

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@Archie0 (5636)

•

26 Jan 13

This is true that water is a very important ingredient in human body. Well there is solution for almost everything that ends up water as it's medicine. I drink at least 3 to 4 bottles a day of water and my nutrition-ist still says that there is only 4% of water in my body that really amazes me at times. She says you are not drinking water at all, and that will not help you losing weight.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

27 Jan 13

True. Because of the toxicity our bodies accumulate from the fast food we eat and the polluted environment, we need water to slowly wash it away from our bodies.

@Arieles (2473)

• United States

17 Jan 13

Water is one of the best drinks you can consume for your brain. Not water on the brain, but it's a brain food. Our bodies are made up of almost 80 percent water, so it's natural we should be consuming it. I like to drink at least a gallon a day. I realize I will void the majority of water I drink, but I like to keep the system "running" and it usually doesn't hurt to go a bit above the required daily amount, because if you're drinking any caffeinated beverages, that will hinder water absorption.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

17 Jan 13

Yes, it is very essential to our health. I am not sure though if I do comply with 55 ounces of water. Or in your case a gallon a day.

@Arieles (2473)

• United States

17 Jan 13

lol...that's okay, you wouldn't have to comply with my consumption of water. I lose a lot through cardio and strength training. The majority of competitors get this much water and more. Some get even two gallons a day. I have never had that much water.

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@smilemoon (766)

• United Arab Emirates

17 Jan 13

Wonderful speech. I like these facts about the importance of drinking water. Concerning those who like drinking coffee, it very important to drink some glasses of water after drinking coffee. Coffee will be harmful if we drink it only.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

19 Jan 13

I wondered about the same thing, too, prashu228. I do drink water a while after consuming coffee or tea.

@prashu228 (37526)

• India

17 Jan 13

Hi Is it advisable to drink water after coffee .some of my friends say that we should not take water before taking tea or coffee. i don't know the reason for that.But your tip sounds good the effect of caffeine can be lessened if we take water after coffee.

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@ZoeJoy (1392)

• United States

17 Jan 13

I do drink water, not only coffee and tea. I think it is important for people to drink water. But so many drink sodas, etc. I drink when I am thirsty and don't keep track of how much water I drink. But, when I am thirsty, I drink water. It is important that we drink water when thirsty, and not other beverages.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

17 Jan 13

I do drink tea, too. The white tea one, not the green tea. I drink coffee sparingly these days and I find that I like having coffee only when I'm out with friends to Starbucks or The Coffee Bean in a mall.

@DiamondLV (59)

• Indonesia

18 Jan 13

My doctor say that too,we should drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. So I drink at least 8 glasses of water a day or 2000lt water drinking a day. I feel more healty, and our body will not get fat by drinking water instead we will become slim. I think this is a good method for those want to weight loss.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

18 Jan 13

I have heard of that, too. This also reminds me of eating watermelon if one wants to get slimmer. My 3-year-old niece loves to eat watermelons a lot that she doesn't leave a portion for us.

@sukumar794 (5040)

• Thiruvananthapuram, India

18 Jan 13

Nice tip...water is in fact that sustains life of all human beings.Water is quite essential for the proper functioning of all the bodily functions.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

You're right there, sukumar794. Not just the brain but also all our body organs need water. Cells cannot function well without it as water also has oxygen.

@myfb2009 (8296)

• Malaysia

23 Jan 13

Jolie, indeed drinking water is very important in our daily life. I do drink water but not sure how many cups since i never keep track of them. I only make sure i do drink some water whenever i had drink some coffee or tea or even sodas. I make sure that my body have enough plain water to filter away those unwanted toxic from my body. I ever heard that over drinking of the plain water is not healthy as well. It is always better to drink moderately for the overall health of our body.

1 person likes this

@dorannmwin (36392)

• United States

19 Jan 13

I know that I don't drink as much water as I should drink, but that is something that I am trying to change in my life. I can get through the six to eight glasses of water every day, but I don't think that I would ever be able to drink one ounce of water for each two pounds that I weigh. I would definitely end up floating away before the end of the week if this was something that I was trying to do in my own life.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

You mentioned a good point. I don't really count anymore how many glasses I have drunk. I just make sure I am not thirsty.

@eagletrek2 (5499)

• Kingston, New York

18 Jan 13

Hi I been reading different health Articles to.they all say to Drink 8 glasses of water to. 1 it help clean out the body Of the other junk we drink. All so before any kind of Excrise it says to drink Water so not to get dehydrated And your right it help wit losing weight.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

Yes, it's a basic fact that water can replenish us. During exercise or a physical workout we need to have water in handy as we are also sweating and releasing toxins through our pores.

@toyota4k (1208)

• Philippines

18 Jan 13

That would mean ten glasses daily if you weigh 160 pounds. I guess it might have said, liquids which includes coffee and juices and even broth or soup, the water they content.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

At least the broth or soup, coffee and other juices are healthier fluids. Coffee, as an obvious exception, in this case as too many coffee cups can be dehydrating.

@edvc77 (2140)

• Philippines

18 Jan 13

Thanks for this information. Water has many health benefits. We should really drink lots of water everyday. I never knew it improves the memory as well. I think I should really drink lts of water then.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

Indeed it has many health benefits. It's advisable to have water more in our fluid intake every day compared to other drinks.

teotimoponcerosacena

@teotimoponcerosacena (1552)

• Philippines

18 Jan 13

Drinking so much is with another effect be sure you are bringing Comfort room with for every time you drink water, you will feel like urinating also, good example is me for I am practicing water therapy but it is effective and good for health while drinking coffee don't require more waters but yet serve the purpose of not falling asleep for coffee carries medicinal content that will assist our body to be active specially at night.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

Hahaha the bringing comfort room is a funny comment.

I think it's not that severe unless one has UTI or bad kidney problems.

@deepu27dec (65)

• India

18 Jan 13

I do drink a lots of water in a day. Earlier I had this bad habit of not drinking enough water. But then one day, I had a severe stomach ache. When I consulted doctor, he said that it was due to low intake of water. Water - an essential ingredient to a healthy lifestyle.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

Sorry to hear about that. I had UTI problems before and my low water intake may have been a problem but I think there were other factors. Nonetheless we cannot rule out the importance of drinking the needed amount of water our body needs.

@AgentGulaman (3546)

• Philippines

17 Jan 13

This is quite interesting. Thanks for sharing this information.

I have been neglecting my water intake nowadays and this may just motivate me to drink water more. However, does the water used in making juices, coffee or tea counts to the water intake?

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

19 Jan 13

What I understood the doctor pointed out was that it was water only and does not include other fluids such as coffee, tea or juices.

@prashu228 (37526)

• India

17 Jan 13

Hi I agree water has many benefits. I read an article which states that headache gets cured when to take adequate amount of water. I am following it. Actually i have this headache problem and they stated that we get headache if our body doesn't contain the amount of water required.so when ever i feel like there is some problem and i am going to face headache i drink water in small sips .That helped me too.

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@Raine38 (12257)

• United States

17 Jan 13

I do drink water, but I also drink other fluids, like green tea, fruit juices, sometimes pop but not as often as I used to. I hope these other fluids count, lol!

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

21 Jan 13

Not to worry. It looks like those can be counted as fluids.

Forever_The_Lamb just responded regarding that.

@Raine38 (12257)

• United States

17 Jan 13

I do drink water, but I also drink other fluids, like green tea, fruit juices, sometimes pop but not as often as I used to. I hope these other fluids count, lol!

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@Shavkat (137189)

• Philippines

17 Jan 13

I agree, our body needs 90 to 95 percent of water. Though the brain can be nourished with glucose. Water is also essential for your kidney to function well.

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

19 Jan 13

The brain does need a lot of nourishment even glucose which you mentioned. I think all organs need water for nourishment and it's definitely one of the essentials we need to remember.

@starsfield (131)

• Indonesia

17 Jan 13

Yeah, i always prefer water or tea but sometimes coffee is fine,, Anyway, i think learning is the best way to keep my brain healthy...

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@joliefille (3690)

• Philippines

18 Jan 13

That's a good point. Learning new things is good for the brain. I've read before that one is not a likely candidate with Alzheimer's if the brain is exercised by learning.