Water is responsible for about 60 percent of your total body weight, and therefore it is very important to make sure you get enough water every day. There are several approaches for how much water you need, and ways to get water into your diet.

Benefits

Having plenty of water in your diet is very beneficial to your health in many ways. Water will help body will function properly, flush out toxins, transport nutrients, and keep your tissues moist, improve your energy and keep you from catching some common illnesses.

Replacement Approach

The replacement approach for determining how much water you should drink is based on replacing the water that is lost from urine output, perspiration, breathing and bowel movements.

8 x 8 Approach

The 8 x 8 approach is a relatively older approach to how much water to drink, and is not scientifically supported. The rule of thumb for this approach is to drink eight, eight ounce glasses of water daily. This is close to the recommended intake for women, but not for men.

Dietary Approach

According to the Institute of Medicine, men should consume about 13 cups of water daily, and women should drink approximately 9 cups per day.

Other Factors

The aforementioned recommendations are based upon general healthy conditions. Exercise, humid weather and illness will naturally increase your need for water and hydration and should be considered when determining your daily intake.

Source:

The Diet Channel

Resource:

Mayo Clinic