So Easy
I FEEL GREAT
Ashton, Leigh and Wigan
Health and Wellbeing Service.
Health Trainers
Drinking more water
is good for your health.
Small changes
make a big difference
Everybody needs water, but most of us don’t
drink enough!
About three-quarters of our body is made
up of water. We lose water all the time – going
to the loo, through our skin and even when
we breathe.
Over a day, the loss adds up to about
one-and-a-half to two litres a day
(that’s two to three pints) but we don’t
really notice.
That’s why we need to keep topped
up with water, by drinking eight glasses
or more over each day, and more than
that in warm weather or when we’re
doing exercise.
Why is drinking
enough water
important?
When the body doesn’t have enough water,
a lot of problems can arise. Just in the
short-term these can include:
Headaches
Tiredness
Finding it hard to concentrate
Dry mouth, bad breath
Being irritable Loss of physical
performance.
But if you don’t drink enough water over
long periods of time, it can contribute to
more serious health issues, such as:
Heart disease
Kidney and urine system infections
Kidney Stones
Some cancers, such as colon cancer
Acute appendicitis
Constipation.
Small changes
make a big difference
Find out how we can help and what our services are about today!
Call: 01942 481 712
How can you
tell if you’re not
drinking enough
water?
It’s very simple – look in the loo!
You can tell by the colour of your urine
whether you’re drinking enough water.
Pale yellow ‘good hydration’ means
there’s no problem. A darker yellow
‘dehydrated’ means you really need to
drink more water.
Just compare with the shades
listed below:
Very good hydration
Good hydration
Slightly dehydrated
Dehydrated
Why is
water best?
Sugary drinks don’t really help, because
they can cause weight gain and tooth
decay, and particularly because you’d need
to drink two to three pints of them a day!
Tea and coffee contain caffeine, which is
OK in small doses every now and again.
But the amount of liquid your body needs
every day can’t sensibly be met by only
drinking tea or coffee.
The easiest option is
also the best, simply
drink more water!
Alcoholic drinks such as beer, lager and
cider actually make dehydration worse,
and can cause serious health and
life problems.
Unsweetened fruit juice contains acids that
can damage teeth over time - so it’s best to
drink them at meal times and dilute them
with a little water.
Flavoured water can be sugary and very
acidic. Drinking too much could damage
your teeth, so it’s best to limit it to
meal times.
Small changes
make a big difference
Find out how we can help and what our services are about today!
Call: 01942 481 712
Make water
a daily habit!
The simplest way to make a difference
is to get into the habit of drinking water
regularly, every day.
Remember to drink water with meals
Replace at least some of your daily
‘cuppas’ with water
Carry a bottle of water with you
wherever you go – you don’t have to
buy expensive bottled water, the stuff
from the tap is fine!
Drink more
water, there’s
no easier way
to a healthier
lifestyle!
You don’t have to feel thirsty to actually
need extra water. So why not simply
make a habit of drinking more water
every day, to stay on the safe side?
Drinking more water means:
Feeling more alert
Being able to think
and concentrate better
Not feeling tired
Avoiding headaches
Helping to prevent many serious
health problems in the future.
Drink more water if you’re doing
something physical, or in warm
weather
We lose a lot of water overnight while
we sleep, so it’s worth taking a glass
of water to bed too.
Small changes
make a big difference
Find out how we can help and what our services are about today!
Call: 01942 481 712
Find out how we can help and what our services are about today!
Call: 01942 481 712
alw.hwb.service bridgewater.nhs.uk
www.bridgewater.nhs.uk