Do you really need 8 glasses of water a day? Your kidneys say 'no'

Reading this article is worth anybody's time. Only when the crucial importance of health, diet and the human body is recognized by their becoming mandatory subjects in school starting with young children and continuing on through to their teenage years will society be able to reap the dividends of an informed populace immune to the nonsense that produces ant-vaxxers and quack theories of hydroxychloroquine and bleach.

Although I was already aware of some of the information, it was still very informative and definitely worth reading. Let's see more articles like this in the future.

I've heard drinking lots of water can help flush away uric acid, which causes gout, not to mention the "sand" in the kidneys that can form into stones. I wish the author mentioned this.

Good information.

One thing to add: if you are taking any oncology (cancer) medication, pay very special attention to what your doctor says about water and hydration. Important.

Eight glasses of water a day? Those old books that told us that malarchy were out of time and outdated when the Rolling Stones had their first US hit. And the water in America is filthy, polluted to the max. Just ask the residents of Flint, Michigan.

I've heard drinking lots of water can help flush away uric acid, which causes gout, not to mention the "sand" in the kidneys that can form into stones. I wish the author mentioned this.

It is mentioned in the article as a possible advantage in cases where the person has propensity to kidney problems, but the science supporting this recommendation is still preliminary and incomplete, which means it is completely possible for it to be wrong.

There was a huge media thing over ten years ago telling everyone to drink more water, something heavily promoted by bottled water companies.

It was complete nonsense - we have a sense of thirst that regulates our need for fluids. Any excess just means more time with TOTO.

Use the eye test - if it looks like beer, you need to drink some water.

I didn't know about this. I drink one glass of water almost every 2 hrs a day and i had to pee every half an hour. If i dont drink water enough, urine will be yellow. Therefore, i drink water a lot, mostly even tap water but always 30 mins before meal and 1 hr after meal. I have seen many village people drink water during the meal and they don't usually have problem with their health. Anyway, thanks for the article.

@ starpunk; The water in Flint Michigan is as much an indicator of the overall purity of water in the USA as the summer temperature of Death Valley is of the US climate.

Slightly easier and shorter version:

When you are drinking enough fluids your pee will be a pale straw yellow colour. If it is darker than this, drink more water.

For extra health, lay off the alcohol and replace coffee with matcha.