The Daily Water Requirement
Keeping Hydrated
For the proper performance of physiological and metabolic activities, the body needs water, and lots of it!
The exact water requirement is subjective: it depends on age, gender, health, lifestyle, nutrition and physical activity, environmental conditions and temperatures. An adult in normal health, who carries out light physical activity, needs about 2.5 litres of water per day, 61% of which is consumed through drinks (1.65 litres), food accounts for 28% (0.75 litres); the remaining 11% is produced by the metabolism (0.3 litres).
In cases of perspiration or intense sweating, the quantity of water introduced must increase proportionally to keep the quantity of water present in the body constant and avoid dehydration. Water is the drink with the greatest hydrating power and is the only one that does not provide calories. It does not contain other substances like other drinks can, such as sugars, preservatives and dyes in soft drinks, fats in milk, and alcohol in wine.
The most hydrating foods are:
- fruit and vegetables: 80%
- meat and fish: 40-70%
- eggs: 75%
- rice: 70%
- cheeses: 20-65%
- bread: 30-40%
In addition to the exogenous water that comes from food and drinks (sources external to our body), a not negligible quantity of water is produced directly by the body during digestion, endogenous or metabolic water, due to the oxidation of nutrients contained in foods. For example 1 gram of carbohydrates generates 0.6 grams of water, 1 gram of protein 0.4 grams of water, while lipids produce 1.07 grams of water for each gram of oxidized fatty acid.
A little myth to dispel: water with meals!
Contrary to what is said, drinking water during meals does not hinder digestion at all, on the contrary, it helps digest, hydrate and reduce the sense of heaviness because it improves gastric secretion. Our advice: drink 2 or 3 glasses per meal!
Water should always be delicious
Drinking plenty of water is good and part of a healthy lifestyle! But sometimes its not easy — sometimes our water just doesn’t taste great. In order to drink more water which is pleasant on the palate, free of smells and free of contaminations we suggest drinking from a mains-fed water cooler or Zip tap, which can also provide perfectly sparkling water. Delicious water makes all the difference and encourages you to drink more. We don’t think you should ever settle for bad tasting water!
