Help me drink more water

CATHY WURZER: I so love this next segment. We have a series on this program called Professional Help because we all need a little help to get through life sometimes, right? From everyday questions to more complex problems, we are asking the experts to lend us a hand. Now, throughout the series, we're going to have some direct advice for us not so direct Minnesotans. Here's Minnesota Now producer Alanna Elder.

ALANNA ELDER: I know Minnesota is hockey country. So for many of you, a Stanley Cup is first and foremost a National Hockey League Championship. For many others, it's also a winner in the reusable water bottle market. You know, the giant tumblers with straws that can fit in a cup holder and come in a bunch of different colors, like not just frost, but also fog and polar swirl. There are adopters of the big cup trend here in the MPR newsroom, like senior producer Heidi Raschke.

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HEIDI RASCHKE: It's like a knockoff Stanley Cup. It looks like a disco ball. And my daughters gave it to me at Christmas time. I'm usually very make-do with whatever cup is at my desk. So to have this ridiculous cup, it's a way of amusing myself at work.

ALANNA ELDER: She actually started out as a Stanley hater.

HEIDI RASCHKE: I'm a Gen Xer, and so I never grew up carrying around a water bottle. And I've always made jokes about how much money I spend just trying to keep my children in water bottles through their lives and how that is so weird to me as someone who just drank out of a fountain growing up.

ALANNA ELDER: So did they get you this cup, like, out of spite? Like, we'll show you by getting you this flashy--

HEIDI RASCHKE: No, I think they were at a store with me, and I saw it. And I like glittery things. And I was like, ooh, I actually do kind of like that cup.

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ALANNA ELDER: It's pretty clear that water bottles have become much more than containers. They're fun accessories that can bring us joy and convey something about our personal style. And companies are well aware of this. But to Heidi's point, people didn't always walk around with 40 ounces of water in one hand.

So in the age of not just Stanley, but Hydro Flasks, Owalas, Yetis, S'wells, and Nalgenes, how much water do we actually need? How much is too much? And what about for people like me, who struggle to drink enough water even knowing it's critical to keeping our bodies running and feeling healthy throughout the day? How can we do better? We need professional help.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: My name is Katherine Zeratsky, and I'm a registered dietitian nutritionist with Mayo Clinic. Drinking too much water can be a risk. I think there was historically a push, especially in athletics, or if people were working in hot conditions where well-meaning supervisors of that activity were saying drink, drink, drink, so you don't get dehydrated, and maybe a common term is pushing fluids. There were a few unfortunate incidents where people drank too much water within a short period of time, that being over a liter of water within an hour.

ALANNA ELDER: So if you're drinking a full Stanley Cup in an hour, maybe slow down because we need a balance of fluids and electrolytes, especially sodium.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: The risk is that the amount of sodium in the body becomes too low or too diluted, and that can cause a condition called hypotension, meaning your blood pressure can get very low. Extremely low blood pressure could cause problems because your heart can't pump efficiently.

ALANNA ELDER: But she says overhydration isn't usually the problem.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: I think dehydration and staying hydrated is probably a bigger challenge for most people, just given that we're often quite busy or in a position where we can't always have access to drinking water.

ALANNA ELDER: As for how much we are supposed to drink in a day, there's a recommendation you may remember.

SUBJECT 1: Yeah, I've always heard that rule of thumb, eight glasses of water a day.

SUBJECT 2: Isn't it like eight cups a day or something, like eight glasses of water a day or something ridiculous?

SUBJECT 3: Yeah, I always think it was like-- what was it, like eight cups or something? Was it 60 or 80 ounces? Which seems like a whole lot.

SUBJECT 4: I remember hearing always eight glasses a day, but then it seems like just in the last year or two, scientists or whoever did the study were like, oh, wait, but you get water from other things, too, that you drink and eat. So we don't necessarily have to have eight full glasses anymore, but that's the number that's stuck in my head from being a kid.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: The rule of thumb of eight 8-ounce glasses still is a good rule to follow.

ALANNA ELDER: There are differences based on body size, activity level, and geography. People in drier climates and at higher elevations need more water. For people who usually drink caffeine, coffee does count. For those who don't, caffeine can cause them to lose fluids more quickly. Zeratsky has one piece of advice that is universal, and that's to pay attention to your body.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: Thirst is generally a good indicator, but some people are not as sensitive to their thirst response. So another indicator that we can use and probably a very good indicator of hydration is, are you visiting the restroom every couple of hours? And when you urinate, is your urine a pale color?

ALANNA ELDER: Sounds simple enough, but there's a lot to distract us from even our most basic needs. If you ask around, people seem to have really specific habits and strategies tied to their water intake.

SUBJECT 5: I drink a lot of water at work because it's something to do. So I like to get up and go refill my water.

SUBJECT 6: I like to start the morning with one glass of water, just to say I had some water. And then it's a journey of coffee, iced coffee. And then every day, around 1:00 or 2:00, when I should stop drinking caffeine, I like to head over to the vending machine at work and get a little pick-me-up of a Diet Mountain Dew, which I refer to as the devil's nectar.

SUBJECT 7: Well, I have a big bottle that I keep at my desk, and I like to fill it up at least once. I have two full ones while I'm at work. Both do that when working at the office and at home, usually.

ALANNA ELDER: Even Zeratsky has to strategize to stay hydrated.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: I work in a medical health care setting. Many people who work in those settings cannot have water at their side. And so sometimes it can be a challenge to get their water in during their work day. So then we will think of strategies. So in the morning, you might think, well, I'm brushing my teeth. I'll get to 8, 8 or 10 ounces in.

And then maybe before I start my workday, I'll try to get another 8 or 10 ounces in. And then if I have a break mid-morning, repeat, and at lunchtime after work and then around the dinner hour. Depending, again, how sensitive that person is, they might want to slow down their drinking as they get closer to their bedtime, just so it's not interrupting their sleep at night.

ALANNA ELDER: And she says it can be genuinely helpful to find ways to make hydration feel more like a treat, like drinking sparkling or flavored water or, yes, having a fun water bottle.

KATHERINE ZERATSKY: You see it, you like it, and so you're more likely to use it. And some water bottles even will have markers or lines on them to say, by certain time of the day, drink this much or something along those lines. So I think visuals, for a lot of people, can be really helpful.

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ALANNA ELDER: Here's an audio reminder, just in case you need it.

HEIDI RASCHKE: Here we go.

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ALANNA ELDER: For MPR News, I'm Alanna Elder.

CATHY WURZER: [GROANS] You know, I have to have a glass of water after listening to that because I'm really, really behind on my water intake. You can hear our series called Professional Help every other Thursday here on Minnesota Now. Or if you missed one, you can find the whole collection on mprnews.org.