
New Study Challenges How Much Water People Should Drink per Day
November 20, 2024 | Source: The Brighter Side | by Joseph Shavit
Each day, water balance is maintained through the delicate interplay of intake and loss. Yet, how much water do you actually need? The answer, it seems, is more nuanced than the age-old “eight glasses a day” advice.
A New Approach to Hydration
Recent research from the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (SIAT) provides groundbreaking insights into daily water needs. The study, published in Science, analyzed water turnover rates—the total movement of water through the body—in 5,604 participants aged 8 days to 96 years from over 20 countries. Unlike conventional methods, this study employed isotope-tracking technology to deliver precise measurements.
Findings indicate significant variation in water turnover, influenced by factors such as age, sex, activity level, and environment. For instance, young adult men typically turn over 4.2 liters daily, while women in their 30s to 60s average 3.3 liters. Contrary to popular belief, much of this water comes from food and metabolic processes, reducing the need to drink excessively.
“The majority of people perhaps don’t need to drink eight glasses of water a day,” remarked Zhang Xueying, the study’s co-first author. Instead, researchers suggest that less than 45% of daily water turnover needs to come from beverages.