This article talks about the highly known idea that to maintain a healthy lifestyle a person must drink at least 8 glasses of water a day (or 64oz.). Undeniably, water is good for the body and is necessary but according to a college professor from Dartmouth Medical School 8 glasses of water a day are not really needed. Large amounts of water can be beneficial for people with specific health concerns (kidney stones or uninary tract infections) but their is no scientific evidence that so much water is necessary. Much of the daily need for water is met by the water content in our food (ex: watermelon, lettuce). It argues that if people just followed their own thirst they would be well hydrated (except for people with thirst regulation problems and the elderly).
The article is an example of hypothesis based science because scientists such as professor of physiology at Dartmouth Medical School, Heinz Valtin, first question the fact that 8 glasses of water were necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle, then he did experiments to prove that misconception wrong.
The importance of these findings to humans is that people don't have to worry so much about having 8 glasses of water a day, just what they think is necessary to keep them hydrated (not thirsty in most cases).
Title: Fact or Fiction? You Must Drink 8 Glasses of Water Daily
Journal: Scientific American
Date Published: June 4, 2009
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