Despite easy access to clean water many of us the live in the west are dehydrated. What we drink does not help either, much of it, for example caffeinated drinks and alcohol has a diuretic effect (dehydrates us and makes us wee more).

Unfortunately our bodies depend on water to function correctly, so when we’re dehydrated our bodies aren’t working as efficiently as they should, which impacts our health and wellbeing. The simple fix is to drink more water and less of the other stuff.

The bonus is that by drinking more water you’re more likely to lose weight – and you’ve not even had to give up your favourite foods to benefit from it!

There are in fact several reasons to drink water to lose weight:

1. our brains often confuse being thirsty with being hungry. So when you feel hungry have a glass of water and wait 20 minutes you might well find you’re no longer hungry.
2. drinking more water (especially cold water) burns additional energy as your body works to maintain it’s internal temperature.
3. water fills up your stomach making you feel fuller.
4. Some scientific studies (for example the one listed below) have shown that drinking around 500ml (two glasses) of water before a meal results in you consuming around 13% less than you otherwise would have.

So how much water should i drink to lose weight? Well it’ll vary from person to person, but you’re almost certainly not drinking enough!

Reference quoted:

Davy BM, Dennis EA, Dengo L, Wilson KL, Davy KP. Water consumption Reduces Energy Intake at a Breakfast Meal in Obese Older Adults. JADA 2008; 108: 1236-1239.