Is it true that the recommendation to drink 8 glasses a day is still effective?

Jakarta –

For body hydration, it is recommended to drink at least 8 glasses a day. But is this recommendation relevant and truly effective? Here’s the explanation.

Every day the body needs water intake so that the organs can function optimally. If you don’t drink enough, various symptoms of dehydration can arise. In the worst cases, it can cause weakness, headaches, and difficulty concentrating.

Then the question arises about how much water should you drink every day? The widely believed recommendation is to drink 8 glasses every day or the equivalent of around 2 liters for adults.

However, is this recommendation still relevant? Is every adult’s needs the same, namely 2 liters? Following are the facts, as summarized from Cnet (11/18/2024):

1. The recommendation to drink 8 glasses a day is a myth

Photo: Getty Images/PonyWang

The recommendation to drink 8 glasses a day is called a myth because it is not supported by scientific evidence. However, many people still believe and practice it. Actually drinking 8 glasses a day is not a bad thing, but this amount could be too much or not enough for some people.

There are other guidelines regarding the recommended amount of water to drink, but there is still no true consensus. In essence, there are no official recommendations about how much water people should drink each day. Because everyone needs a different amount of water.

However, there are recommendations for daily water intake that is considered sufficient for men and women, but again the amount is different for each person. This intake also takes into account the intake of drinks other than water, such as milk, tea and even coffee. Also water obtained from fruit and vegetable intake.

The amount of intake is 15.5 glasses (3.7 liters) for men and 11.5 glasses (2.7 liters) for women. Although this is the closest figure to the recommended daily intake, the amount can be different for each person based on their health condition.

2. The condition of people who need more water

Some people need more water intake. One of them is those who have active and outdoor work. Because the more sweat that comes out, the more water intake is needed to replace lost fluids.

People who exercise frequently, such as at the gym or outdoor activities, also need to drink more water to replace wasted fluids.

Then those who live in hot weather are also advised to drink more water because they are at high risk of losing a lot of fluids. Even for pregnant and breastfeeding women, they need lots of water to encourage healthy blood circulation, increase calorie intake, and support other physiological processes.

Read the next page to find out the rules for drinking to hydrate the body.