I have a confession to make: my name is Ally Sarver, and I go about my day to day life extremely dehydrated. And when I say extremely, I mean I’m lucky if I drink even 12 oz of pure water a day. You, along with many others, may be wondering how I remain a functioning human being with such little water intake, especially knowing how important water is. But don’t be fooled. I drink fluids throughout the day, but none of them are pure water. To give you a good idea of what my day-to-day fluid intake looks like, allow me to tell you: 

• At around 7:30, I’ll have a to-go sized cup of coffee with creamer 
• At lunch, I’ll either drink no water, or have a few sips from my friends water bottle to hold me over
• After school, I’ll stop by panera and get a large iced green hibiscus tea

And that’s about it. It’s genuinely scary to see that when I put it in writing. Once again, to be very clear, each of these fluids (other than the coffee creamer which is dairy), has a base of water. I’m still drinking water, but not even close to enough. In late January of 2023, I realized how incredibly horrible my water intake was and knew that I needed to make a change. So I began to carry a water bottle around with me everywhere I went, and tried to fill it up a minimum of 3 times a day. I continued to drink coffee and green tea, but I just added water to my diet as well. Before I share what this did for me personally, below I have some of the many benefits to drinking enough water.

Water intake varies for everyone. I did some research before beginning this “experiment” of mine, and discovered that everyday, you should drink between half an ounce to an ounce of water for each pound you weigh. But if you don’t want to calculate that, a good rule of thumb is 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) for men and 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) for women each day. An obvious reason you should drink water is to maximize your physical activity. This makes sense when you think about going to the gym, going to practice, or even just going on a run. But physical activity can consist of just walking to your classes, making your bed, or going to the store. Anything that involves movement can be considered physical activity, and anything that is considered physical activity needs water to fuel it. Think of a car: without enough gas (or any gas at all, for that matter), the car won’t be able to run, or will be at risk of stopping at any given moment. It needs gas to move, in the same way that we need water! Water also has a very strong effect on brain activity. Dehydration can impair many functions of the brain including mood, memory, and the overall ability of the brain to carry out functions quickly and effectively. Water prevents headaches and assists in treating kidney stones, as well as increasing bowel movements and aid in overall health and wellness. There isn’t much water can’t help with, which shouldn’t be surprising considering the human body is 60% water (if nourished properly, that is). 

So what exactly did I experience when I changed my habits? Well, for starters, it didn’t even take a day for my mom to notice my mood change. The first night I started carrying around my water bottle, my mom made a comment to me at dinner about how I seemed more cheery and awake, and asked if I got more sleep the previous night. Nope. Just water! And it wasn’t just her noticing, I felt better. Maybe it was the placebo effect, and I thought I felt better because I knew I should, but I felt overall more productive and eager to do literally anything. The biggest difference I noticed was that my headaches all went away. This was absolutely mind blowing to me because I didn’t even know I was having headaches until they were gone. That may sound ridiculous and hard to believe, but it wasn’t a pounding headache that left, more of a consistent soreness. After about 3 days of drinking water more regularly, I woke up with a clear head, and I felt amazing. I also realized my vision didn’t go black every time I stood up (and before you say anything about how my vision going black every time I stood up seems like something I should’ve taken more seriously, I just thought I had an iron deficiency). Overall, my mood was better, I was more productive, and definitely more energized and able to complete day-to-day tasks more adequately. 

Just as a very basic disclaimer, none of my findings are scientific fact. However, the benefits I discussed were researched and have been proven by scientists studying the benefits of proper hydration. Take this article with a grain of salt, and do your own research if this topic interests you to learn more. I also would like to make it blatantly clear that water, along with most everything else you put into your body, is good in moderation. It is possible, though not common, to drown yourself from drinking too much water. And although this is hard to do, it is good to be cautious when it comes to putting anything in your body. So look into it, drink water, and stay hydrated!

“How Much Water Do You Need to Stay Healthy?” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 12 Oct. 2022, https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256#:~:text=The%20U.S.%20National%20Academies%20of,fluids%20a%20day%20for%20women.