[I169]Importance Of Drinking Water

It's quite important that you drink enough water during your pregnancy and postpartum period. This will help ensure that your pregnancy is a healthy one. Water does a few things for you. It helps your kidney and liver functions (and those of your baby also), and it also flushes waste from your system cells. Furthermore, during these nine months, you need a lot of water to help with your body's expansion. On top of all of that, our blood volume will increase quite a bit. Because of this, without enough water, you could experience pre-term labor, miscarriage, constipation, or an increase in fatigue. And finally, without enough water, milk production and flow will be hindered.

You probably already have heard that you need plenty of water when pregnant. However, even though they know it, most women still don't get enough water. Some just don't like drinking it, while others argue that they don't get thirsty enough. And some women actually try drinking other "water-based beverages, not knowing that they actually cause further dehydration.

Here are some important facts every pregnant woman should know. First, a pregnant woman needs between eight and twelve 8-ounce glasses of water a day. She should drink even more if the weather is hot or if she's been exercising.

Also, don't always use thirst as an indicator of whether or not you're drinking enough water. Everybody doesn't always feel thirsty when they need some more water. In fact, a lot of times, we don't experience thirst until dehydration has already begun. It's better to dehydrate ahead of time.

Remember not to try to substitute sodas or other caffeinated beverages for water. These will actually cause your body to dehydrate faster. Therefore, they do not and should not be counted as part of your daily fluid intake. The less you drink of these while pregnant, the better. At most, drink them only a couple times a day.

Increasing your water consumption will actually help with your feelings of tiredness. So the next time you feel a bout of fatigue coming on, try drinking more water. You'll probably feel a remarkable improvement.

Here are some suggestions for getting enough water. First, fill a pitcher with the amount of water (or other healthy beverage) you want to drink the next day. Then throughout the day, keep that pitcher with you, so that you're constantly reminded to drink up. You might even consider setting an alarm to remind you to drink a glass and maybe even do a few stretches.

Also, if you just drink something other than water, make it a healthy drink that has no caffeine and very little sugar. A good choice for pregnant women is something called Glow Mama. This is a natural juice-based drink that also has fiber, calcium, folic acid, iron, and several helpful vitamins. Glow Mama is also has fiber and is good for you, since it's made from real kiwi juice. Plus it only has 70 calories a bottle.

There are other healthier drinks available too. Just remember that much of your hydration should always come from plain ol' water.