I have met patients who come to me with excessive urination who drink 5 litres of water per day. When I ask them why they drink so much, they usually say that a friend told them to or they read about the benefits of water in a magazine. Curing their urinary problem is very simple!

Rather than educating individuals about the body’s in-built “thirst thermostat”, the media and health practitioners make sweeping generalisations about how much water to drink. I agree that as a society, we generally do not drink enough water, however the true solution is teaching people to know themselves and hence know how much is required for their system.

A 6 foot male who works as a labourer clearly has very different water requirements from a little lady in a nursing home. Additionally, a kidney stone patient has medical reasons why over-hydration is necessary. For the general population, it is important that water is consumed regularly throughout the day in accordance with the sense of thirst. It is really as simple as that.

A good morning practice after waking and brushing the teeth, is to consume 1 or 2 glasses of warm water with a little lemon and ginger. This is good for general digestive health.

As with everything, “the simple things in life are often the best”.

In Health and Wellness