When you think about it, water in general is actually pretty misunderstood. So vital is it to our health that you would think this most fundamental of substances would be a bit better understood. Nevertheless, people are often confused by not only the many kinds of water out there – filtered water, purified water, distilled water, hydrogen water, and so on – but also about what water can offer and how it should be incorporated into a healthy lifestyle.
Several facts demonstrate this general ignorance well. Did you know, for example, that many drinks that have a high-water content can have a net dehydrating effect on your body? Did you know that the H2O water molecule is in fact not the one which is absorbed the easiest and therefore make for the best form of hydration? This might surprise you, and it is no surprise. As mentioned, there is a lot of confusion surrounding water.
Which Water is Best?
Confusing the matter even further is that answering the question “which water is best?” with one definitive answer is, in fact, impossible. It all depends on what you want from your water.
Water products company Synergy Science point out that there are, in fact, many different water products designed for specific things. The purest water for sure is not always the best water and many water products, such as hydrogen water, actually have substances added to the water itself in order to offer certain health benefits. For some, pure hydration might be optimal; for others looking to address a particular health issue, for example, it might be best to go for a water that has the appropriate substances added.
Common Water Myths Debunked
As you can probably tell by now, water is a huge topic., In fact, it is too huge to set out effectively here every consideration you should make before installing a filtration system, deciding on a particular water product, or thinking about how best to get hydration into your diet. It might be a much better idea then to address the general ignorance by debunking some of the top water health myths. Here follows some commonly held ideas that it is time to stop holding:
Water Gives Your Energy
No, it doesn’t. Water does so many things that are essential for health, but this is not one of them. Water has no calories, even with the many additional substances that can be present.
Drinking Water Helps You Lose Weight
Closely related to the previous misconception is the idea that drinking water is a good way to lose weight. This is a tenuous assertion at best. While it is true that water contains no calories and therefore will not cause you to gain any weight, it won’t do anything about your hunger either – you will be just as hungry after drinking water.
Water Helps You Detox
In a certain sense, this myth about water might not be a myth. It is your kidneys that detox your body, and it is indeed true that dehydration can hamper this process. However, the “flushing out” idea that you can speed up detox by drinking a lot of water in a short space of time is simply not true. Instead, you could end up giving yourself hypernatremia, which is when the sodium content in your body is overly diluted by water consumption. This is bad for your health.
Water can do so much for you, and it is absolutely essential to consume enough of it every day. However, before settling on a daily hydration plan, it is best to toss away these commonly held misconceptions.
