4 replies to this topic

[InquilineKea]

Even mild dehydration can impair cognitive performance.

At the same time, though, there is a point where more water means that you have to go to the bathroom so much that it could come at particularly inconvenient times (such as the middle of a presentation or meeting, or when you're waiting for a deadline)

See http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/20336685 and http://www.nature.co...l/1601898a.html

User-friendly summary is at http://www.dailymail...-hydration.html (yes I know that anything at Daily Mail should be taken with a grain of salt, but this was the best I could find).

[niner]

Dehydration is bad. You could start by measuring the amount of water you currently consume. I used to think that I drank a lot of water, until I measured it. It was around 64 oz, which matches the old saw of 'eight 8 oz glass a day'. The Institute of Medicine says the Adequate Intake for men is 3 liters, and 2.2 for women. I'm sure there are lots of variables, like temperature, humidity, exertion level, weight, BMI, salt consumption, etc. Overhydration is also bad. Urine should be light colored. If it's dark, you're probably dehydrated unless maybe you've eaten something like beets.

[Destiny's Equation]

Urine should be light colored. If it's dark, you're probably dehydrated unless maybe you've eaten something like beets.

If it’s a florescent dark, you are excreting unabsorbed supplements. If it’s a dull dirty dark, you are dehydrated.

(And as niner mentioned, certain foods will turn it fun colors.)

[niner]

If it’s a florescent dark, you are excreting unabsorbed supplements.

Riboflavin is the culprit here. Methylene Blue can turn your pee blue if you take enough. I don't know of any others common supplements that make colors. Turmeric, maybe?

[deeptrance]

The question of optimal water intake is an excellent one. We're constantly being told how important it is and sometimes we're even advised to drink water at toxic levels by some people who go overboard with it. I used to drink way too much fluid, probably because I moved from coastal California to Texas and wasn't used to the heat, so I felt a need to have cold fluid constantly going into my mouth. This caused dangerous electrolyte imbalances, especially hyponatremia (low sodium), and a few times I was hospitalized for days to slowly bring my sodium up.

I eventually disciplined myself to drink less fluids and then I went too far in that direction! The last time my electrolytes were tested I was high in sodium and the doc wants to see me again about it on Tuesday. This is driving me nuts, so I was really happy to see that there was a thread about it. Unfortunately we don't seem to have answers that can tell us how an individual can determine his or her specific needs. I know it depends a lot on activity and other factors, as well as diet. Some people say we should get a large amount of our water from the food we eat, and this is possible if we focus on fresh fruits and vegetables, which are mostly comprised of water.

Supplements and vitamins can change urine color. Some medications can as well. Dilantin turned my pee dark orange-brown. B vitamins always cause urine to turn deeper yellow. Kind of a pretty yellow, but it suggests that we might be stressing our kidneys if we're seeing a lot of color.

Edited by deeptrance, 29 April 2012 - 10:31 PM.