drinking too much water.

It is a habit of mine to chug down copious amounts of water, making the waiter who serves me and my brother at restaurants to circle our table with the water jug. On this particular flight, I'd ask for multiple bottles of water, and went to the restroom more than anyone else. My mom expressed concerns that I was drinking too much H-2-O, but this was a thirteen hour flight- how did anyone else survive?

 

Typical- "yes, I'd like some water... again."

First sign of land!

This, combined with a recent magazine article I read stating that drinking water during meals is actively bad for you, made me do some scoping around the web.

Many agree that about 2 liters of water a day is enough, and probably adequate for you to function. (Mayo Clinic) Your body is about two thirds water by weight, and you won’t get thirsty beyond what your body can handle. However, it is dangerous to force large amounts of water  unless you are actually thirsty- such as the case with the 28-year-old mother who died in a “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” contest in 2007.

In addition, there is no evidence that drinking water during eating will somehow dilute your digestive enzymes. (Mayo Clinic). There is a lot of concerns and myths out there about the "right" way to drink water- an hour after meals, 15 minutes before meals, only hot water during meals, but listen to your body. If you have indigestion or acid reflux, you may want to watch how much water you are drinking during meals, but otherwise, drink up!

Many times, I find that when I feel hungry I am actually thirsty. This may be an additional advantage to drinking some aqua before meals to make sure you eat when you are truly hungry.

Here's a cuteness overload- this is one of about fifty framed Little Yesle around dad's house:

me in Hanbok circa 1994.