notso

seriously,don't worry about it too much,I haven't heard of anyone coming down sick or dying from drinking too much water.

Jane

It is a medical fact that if we wait until a thirst message drives us to take a drink of water, we have already put stress on every cell within our bodies. It is preferable to keep our water intake at a comfortable level to avoid ever experiencing the unpleasantness (and damage) of thirst. Rather like being in the habit of filling the gasoline tank, changing the oil, refilling the wiper fluid, adding water, inflating tire pressure, etc. in our vehicles at the last possible opportunity. The car will run, but probably not as efficiently as it could and should. Same with us human types.

I'm with

Your body requires about a liter of FLUID a day not necessarily water...everything you eat or drink has some amount of fluid, which counts toward that total.<BR><BR>I think of it as an adult pacifier to be walking around sucking on a water bottle all day.<BR><BR>Evian backwards= Naive<BR><BR><BR>In 3rd world countries I would certainly drink bottled water, but in paris or Rome , I can make do with the stuff that comes out of the tap or fountain.<BR>

gail

If you fly these days, security at most airports will ask you to take a drink from any unsealed beverage bottle/cup to make sure it is not some kind of flammable or dangerous liquid. At some airports they will not let you take any beverages through security (just happened at Miami to people in front of us - one with spring water and one with coffee.

Traveler

Bea, I'm with you on this. This idea of taking a swig of water every 10 minutes, as the bottle-toters seem to do, seems strange to me. Water is waaaay too heavy for me to be carrying around. But to each his own. I put the bottle-toters in the same category as white tennis shoe wearers.

Sue

The Michigan Medical Society says this: "Drink six to eight 10-ounce glasses of water or other non-alcoholic or non-caffeinated fluids every day. It is easiest to take small sips throughout the day, instead of full glasses all at once." That is a lot more than a liter, and eliminates many "fluids."<BR><BR>Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, which deplete your body of fluids. Once you eliminate coffee, tea, beer and soft drinks, there are not a lot of fluids left. Water is the best!

boooooooring

Some people suffer from kidney stones/ailments and need to continually drink water to flush their kidneys.<BR>Who knows why someone is carrying around a bottle of water.<BR>WHO CARES?<BR>besides Beatrice of course.

thirsty

Jeez...when you travel, you generally do a lot of walking. When you're exercising like this, you need water. Simple as that.<BR><BR>You obviously don't walk much.<BR><BR>And I bet your lips are dried and cracked.

Big Babies

I'm with Beatrice too on this one and with the poster who said that they see the constant swigging as an adult pacifier. <BR><BR>Also, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the tap water in most, if not all, European countries. I should know; I'm European and I drink it.<BR><BR>

beatriceisnuts

Big baby, you're so big because your body is forced to get your fluids from food because you aren't smart enough to drink water. why all the control freaks who try to criticize something as silly and harmless as water?!?! The inside of your brains are dried up from not enough water, and you can't think clearly.<BR><BR>

not

&gt;I haven't heard of anyone coming down &gt;sick or dying from drinking too much &gt;water<BR><BR>Actually, there have been cases of people dying because of drinking too much water. Some recent examples have happened when people have been taking ecstasy. I think that thing about thirst is silly if you don't mind my saying so. You could say that we should eat BEFORE we feel hungry because starvation causes cell damage.

water

Not is quite right. There's a condition called water intoxication or hyponatremia. It sometimes happens in athletes or as not says in people who have taken extasy.<BR>What's sinister is that the symptoms generally mirror those of dehydration (apathy, confusion, nausea, and fatigue) so the patient thinks that they are dehydrated and take in even more water. What happens is that the body's balance of salt and water become quickly diluted and it can lead to coma and sometimes death. It's unlikely that the average bottle swigger is in any great danger but on average, during rest the body can rid itself of 1 to 1 ½ quarts of water in an hour through urination. If you drink more than that per hour, in excess of what you need, the body will retain water and dilute body fluids.

notso

of course too much water can killo-and btw-ecstasy killed those people,not drinking water.you can drown in water also,there is always an extreme example.<BR>my point was-in every day life, no one is going to die from drinking too much water.you can't die from nit picking either but you sure can be annoyed by them.

Leslie

I was watching "Sunday Morning with Charles Kuralt" this morning, and there happened to be a lengthy piece on George Karlin. One of the segments that was played happened to be practically identical, word for word regarding what Beatrice espoused above. Seems that Beatrice has been watching too much George Carlin, and needs to get some new material. I'm must wondering if this little piece also appears in one of Carlin's books.

doris

Ever hear of travelers constipation? Drinking lots of water helps.

beatricehasa point

Come on, lighten up the rest of you. Beatrice made a good and humorous observation: we now act as though five minutes away from a water source will bring on a coma. <BR><BR>Heck, if Seinfeld said her spiel, he'd at least get a chuckle.<BR><BR>Her point that we are suckers for marketing and the social conditioning that results is apt. I carry a water bottle--so I guess I've fallen for it, too.<BR><BR>I know all those stats on "when you feel thirsty, your body is already in stress" and "air in the plane is very dry--to prevent constipation and jet lag, hydrate." No argument.<BR><BR>However, the eight glasses a day of water belief was recently exploded by about five studies. The various conclusions added up to the following "no duh"rink whatever amount of liquid it takes to keep your urine from being dark. <BR>

brain

Yeah, it's marketing, you idiots. Sure, there are people with legitimate needs for lots of water, and there is such a thing as dehydration, and there are deserts in this world, and blah, blah, blah. Nevertheless, the vast majority of people who tote around those large and expensive bottles have no real need for them other than following the dictates of marketing regimes or the desire to fit in. Some of these jokers, like fish and other lower forms of life, cannot seem to function without a steady stream of water flushing out their system. There's also a measure of social snobbery, as the stuff is pricey. Good forbid they might have to drink higher-quality water out of the tap like some sort of prole. Operating a water fountain would probably also require more cognitive ability than they can muster.<BR><BR>To be honest, while I do see this habit as a red flag of idiocy, it usually does not have a direct impact on those around them. However, as someone else pointed out, some airports do not allow open food or drink through security. At Miami International recently, this information was posted on large signs in a couple of different languages. Nevertheless, it seems like a good percentage of folks in line reacted with shock, amazement and even belligerency when they were instructed to dispose of their aquatic pacifiers. I thought one lady was actually going to get violent (talk about stupid). Thus, the whole line was delayed.<BR><BR>BTW, to anticipate the standard drivel: You are ocrrect, it is not "any of my business" whether people wish to haul gallons of water with them everywhere. I have no desire to prohibit this kind of behavior nor do I directly wish to influence the behavior of others in this matter. Nevertheless, I can express an opinion and on this, and my opinion is that in most cases it is infantile behavior or blind acceptance of marketing strategies.

mama

For years when my son was small, I carried bottled water for him.Children are always getting thirsty and 1-I don't want to go to a restaurant every time to get him a drink of water,2-I wouldn't let my dog drink off a water fountain in a city.<BR>So bottled water has been a staple in our household for years.<BR>It is not mandatory though,so most of you who dislike it so,don't have to do it.

lina

Many reasons.<BR><BR>A member of my traveling party has to swallow pills at certain times, and carrying his own water is convenient for this. <BR><BR>Another member has decided, after enduring an agonizing intestinal infection, that as rare as that was, she isn't going to risk it again.<BR><BR>I agree that to be have no health concerns is to travel lighter. One would think you'd be a little more grateful about this, and a little less obnoxious.<BR><BR><BR>

thirsty

While in Prague on my first trip to Europe, on the first day we were visiting the castle, and I became very thirsty. I asked our guide if he knew where there might be a water fountain, and he said that there were no public water fountains, either there or most other places in the city; and if I should by any chance see one, I shouldn't drink from it anyway, as the water would be unsafe. It was at least another couple of hours until I was able to get a drink anywhere, and, although I found the castle fascinating and wonderful, my extreme thirstiness detracted from my enjoyment quite a bit. And when I tried to buy a bottle of water from a street vendor later, all I had was large bills from exchanging my money at the airport, and she wouldn't take large bills, so I was unable to buy any water. Thus, I think it's a very good idea to carry a small bottle of water with you, at least in Europe - but the cheap stuff's fine, it doesn't have to be designer water.<BR><BR>Also, contrary to some opinions expressed here, staying hydrated is important, especially in hot and humid weather, or if you're exercising (which can include a lot of walking around while sightseeing). I accompanied a high school group on a trip recently, and a couple of the kids got nauseous and dizzy. We determined that they were merely dehydrated, had been too busy having fun to remember to drink, and as soon as we got some fluids in them they felt immensly better.<BR><BR>Of course the companies selling water will market heavily, but I think that before bottled water was widely available, we all drank more sodas, and water is definitely more healthy and better for your teetht!