So, what are the important functions of water in the body?
1, digestive aid
The food we eat every day needs to be digested and absorbed, and these processes need water to help. Without water, the digestive function cannot be completed.
2. Waste discharge
After food is digested and absorbed, the residual waste must be excreted through sweat, breathing and defecation. Although there are different ways of excretion, it needs water to help it go smoothly.
Step 3 lubricate joints
If there is no lubricant in human joints, the friction between bones will make them inflexible, and water is the source of joint lubricant.
Step 4 balance your body temperature
There is a close relationship between water and body temperature. When the weather is cold, the pores contract, locking in water to reduce the loss and maintain body temperature balance.
In summer, the pores of the skin are open and water is discharged from the skin surface through sweat glands. Sweat evaporation helps to dissipate heat and maintain body temperature balance.
5. Maintain cells
The human body is made up of countless cells, most of which are water, and only water can maintain the metabolism of the skin.
6, lymph and blood
The transportation of nutrients, waste discharge and recycling are all driven by water, and the activities of all parts of the human body and the metabolism of every organ also need water to maintain.
So the best way is to pay attention to replenish water in time to avoid dehydration.
Otherwise, the body will continue to lack water, the metabolism will not be smooth, and the body function will gradually decline.
The importance of water to human health is well known. If a person doesn't eat, he can live for a month only by storing nutrients in his body or consuming his own tissues.
But if you don't drink water, it will be difficult for a week. Water loss in the body 10% is a threat to health. If you lose 20% water, your life will be in danger, which shows the importance of water to life.
Drinking water is something that everyone should do every day. It seems simple, but drinking water is also a science. Drinking water correctly is more conducive to health.
What is the correct way to drink water? It needs to be comprehensively considered from the following aspects.
How much should I drink every day?
According to the needs of the human body, medical experts believe that the average daily intake of 2.5 liters is appropriate.
The water needed by human body is first obtained from drinking water and then from food. When enough water is ingested, the circulation of blood and lymph will be in a good state.
Only in this way can we ensure the supply of nutrients needed by the body, dissolve waste and eliminate toxins, thus improving the function of internal organs and making the skin moist and smooth.
In recent years, some foreign reports have put forward different views. Some experts pointed out that it is unnecessary to drink 8 glasses of water every day, and drinking too much water will also bring trouble to the body.
Nutrition experts point out that drinking water is the same as taking in calories, "take as much as you need." At present, there is no scientific evidence that drinking more water can detoxify more.
Moreover, there are problems such as electrolyte imbalance (a large amount of sodium and potassium ions are lost) and water-soluble vitamins (such as B and C) are easy to lose.
According to scientific research, the water lost by human body from urine, sweat or skin evaporation every day is about 1800 ~ 2000 cc.
Therefore, healthy adults need to supplement about 2000cc of water every day.
But 2000cc of water is not necessarily obtained by drinking water, and the moisture in food should be included.
The food we eat every day contains a lot of water. For example, most vegetables and fruits contain more than 90% water, while eggs and fish also contain about 75% water.
Roughly speaking, we can get at least 300 ~ 400 cc of water from food or soup when we eat a meal.
Therefore, after deducting 1, 000 ~ 1, 200 cc of water for three meals, we only need to drink 1, 000 ~ 1, 200 cc of boiled water every day, with an average of 2 cups in the morning and 2 cups in the afternoon, and it is ready.
However, the demand for water must depend on everyone's environment (temperature, humidity), exercise, health and food intake. There is no standard value.
Some people really need to drink more water, including patients with gout and kidney calculi.
Usually, how much water each person needs to drink varies according to the activity, environment and even the weather.
Drinking more water for normal people will not have much impact on the body, but it may lead to increased urination and inconvenient life.
However, for some special people, we must pay special attention to the amount of drinking water. For example, patients with edema, heart failure and renal failure should not drink too much water, because drinking too much water will increase the burden on the heart and kidneys and easily lead to aggravation of the disease.
For patients with heatstroke, cystitis, constipation, dry skin and other diseases, drinking plenty of water can play a certain role in relieving the disease. In addition, people should drink more water when they have a cold and fever, because rising body temperature will cause water loss.
Second, when is the best time to drink?
Chinese medicine experts believe that drinking water during these four periods is most beneficial to health.
1, a glass of water in the morning
Drinking water in the morning has two advantages:
First of all: 5: 00 am to 7: 00 am is the time when the essence of the large intestine begins to flourish. Under normal circumstances, you should defecate. With the encouragement of the large intestine and the help of a glass of water in the morning, the stool will come down, which can help detoxify.
Because the poison in the stool accounts for 50% of all poisons in the human body. If you have constipation habits, drink a glass of water after getting up, and the effect will be more obvious.
Secondly, when sleeping at night, urine in the breath, skin and bladder will consume a lot of water in the body and increase blood viscosity, which is a major reason why cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are prone to occur at dawn.
A glass of water in the morning can help dilute blood viscosity and protect cardiovascular system.
2. Arrive at 9 am 1 1 a glass of water.
This time is the season of spleen meridian, which means it is the most active time.
After breakfast, the spleen is mainly responsible for the digestion and absorption of food. This process needs the help of water, in order to better convert food into nutrients needed by the body and provide enough energy for intense work in the morning.
3. 1 a glass of water at 3 pm
This time is the season of small intestine, and drinking more water can protect blood vessels.
Our lunch is absorbed by the small intestine on duty.
In Huangdi Neijing, it is considered that the small intestine meridian is "an official who is popular, and things come out."
The small intestine is mainly responsible for absorption and turbidity separation (water belongs to the bladder, dregs to the large intestine and essence to the spleen).
When the small intestine absorbs nutrients from food and sends these nutrients into the blood.
At this time, the blood concentration will suddenly increase a lot. When the blood concentration is high, the operation will be hindered.
Therefore, at this time, we need a glass of water to dilute the increasing blood concentration, which can protect blood vessels well.
4. a glass of water from 5 pm to 7 pm.
This time is the season of kidney meridian, and it is also the best time to tonify and protect kidney.
Drinking a glass of water at this time has a good cleaning effect on the kidneys and can prevent kidney calculi and other problems.
Develop a good habit of drinking water every day without thirst. Can effectively avoid constipation, gastroenteritis, kidney calculi and even cardiovascular problems. Great health begins with childhood habits.