Is Your Bad Breath A Hydration Problem?
A whopping 75% of Americans are estimated to experience chronic dehydration. It can really seem like a chore to remember to drink enough water, but what you might not know is how much hydration affects your skin, for example. And your mood. And your bowel movements. And your oral hygiene! Yup, water affects pretty much everything.
What Have You Been Drinking Instead?
There are plenty of people that opt to drink beverages such as tea, coffee, juice, or soda instead. While you do hydrate yourself to an extent with these drinks, they can also be harmful, especially if you go overboard. Coffee, for example, is kind of a trade-off: it contains polyphenols that break up plaque bacteria, but it causes bad breath and can stain your teeth. Soda, on the other hand, is pretty much all bad: the sugars stick to your teeth and are eaten away by bacteria, and they don’t stop once they get to the enamel - drinking too much soda is a great way to end up with cavities. Herbal (non-caffeinated) teas and natural juices do a much better job of quenching thirst, and will do less damage to your teeth, though keep an eye on the sugar content. Water is your best option though and is easily accessible from your Vapur anti-bottle!
Getting Used To Drinking Water
The recommended amount of water can be easily remembered by 8x8 - meaning eight full 8-ounce glasses per day, which is about 2 liters, or half a gallon. One of the things that make it difficult to get used to hydrating yourself is that you don’t feel thirsty. While it takes willpower to get started, the good news is that you will get more thirsty as your body adapts to the intake, making it a lot easier to remember to drink. If the taste (of lack thereof) makes water seem boring to you, you can always switch things up a bit by adding a couple ingredients without affecting its hydrating qualities. In fact, some additions might have extra health benefits!
Get Your Own, Personal Water Bottle
One of the most effective things you can do to stay hydrated is to get a reusable water bottle to bring with you while you go about your day. This means that you’ll always have water within arm’s reach - you can keep the bottle topped up with tap water. If you’re short on space, you can get the kind that can be folded up and put in your pocket. Bringing a liter of water around is more convenient that you think. You’ll also be doing the planet a favor by avoiding single-use plastic bottles. Happy hydrating!
