Drinking 8 glasses of water a day is essential for hydration

Question

It is known that drinking eight glasses of water a day is needed if your body is to receive the proper amount of hydration for the day.

Comments

This is True. Hospitals and clinical websites can agree with this with the Harvard Health website even saying 11-15 cups of water a day is the recommended amount. Drinking this much water a day can prevent dehydration which can make you have mood changes, can cause you to pass out, constipation and can help prevent kidney stones from building up, which is one of the worst pains someone can feel.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink

Answer 1

While I understand this to be partially true, many sources I found suggested a range from 4-11 cups per day as a recommended daily water consumption. On average I would say most of the sources did say eight cups was recommended, however, since there is no single answer I cannot testify that this claim is completely accurate. 

https://www.uhhospitals.org/blog/articles/2022/03/how-much-water-should-you-drink-a-day

https://www.everydayhealth.com/dehydration/hydration-calculator/

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink

Comments

I agree think your answer is a solid choice for this original claim. Using multiple sources and cross-referencing what each one says to come this conclusion is helpful in gaining further insight and awareness into this claim. The transparency of there not being truly a 100-percent answer to the claim builds credibility and trust into the pursuit for a solid answer.

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I really liked your use of multiple different sources to demonstrate you really looked further into this research! Your use of these sources shows transparency and credibility to your answer and also demonstrates that you were trying to show a definite answer on if this claim was true or false.

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I like how you used 3 different sources to prove that the orignal articles claim was false. It shows the readers how this author's claim is false really well.

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I think you've made a strong argument here by restating the range of water needed and backing up the claim with various trusted sources. One thing I'm curious about is, did you use the calculator you sourced to come up with the numbers or was there another use for it?

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i appreciate that you used multiple different sources, and clarified that most websites claimed that eight cups was recommended, but not essential.

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I like how you provided multiple sources in your fact check. I would agree that it's different for different people. I would not say that 8 glasses of water is ESSENTIAL for everyone's hydration. For some it may be more or less.

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Your fact check is well-balanced and thorough. I like how you highlighted that hydration needs can vary widely depending on individual factors like age, activity level, and climate. The sources you've provided show that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to daily water intake.

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https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink

Answer 2

Actually, nowhere in the article provided does it say that eight glasses a day is what is needed. It acknowledges the "common knowledge" that eight glasses is an adequate amount of water, but simply comments that it's "easy to remember, and a reasonable goal". The rest of the article talks about how people's needs for hydration vary WILDLY based on different factors including overall health, environment, and exercise. An exact quote from the article says "For some people, fewer than eight glasses a day might be enough. But other people might need more."

Comments

Thanks for including the quote, it puts the original statement into perspective. I would say that you should link a reputable health site (like the CDC or WHO) debunking the claim and giving the reader correct information.

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This put the original comment in to a much clearer perspective and how drinking 8 glasses of water a day is not a requirement or a scientific fact. I think you should attach a claim from another source that shows this is not a requirement.

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This is a good fact check, the quote that you added from the source provided in the original claim proves that you read the article and did your due diligence in that regard, however I think your fact check could benefit from additional resources that support your argument further.

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The article doesn’t claim that eight glasses is necessary, but instead refers to it as “common knowledge” and a “reasonable goal” that’s easy to remember. I appreciate you clarifying that distinction and pointing out how the original claim can be misleading. In your response, I think it would’ve been even stronger if you had included additional sources to further support the idea that hydration needs vary and that “needing to drink 8 glasses a day to keep hydrated” is not definitive.

Answer 3

This claim is not entirely true but it is also not false. The Mayo Clinic Article attached reccomends 8 glasses of water per day as a suggestion not a requirement. The article shows the benefits of drinking lots of glasses of water but nowhere says 8 glasses a day is a requirement. An article by Mosaic states factors like exercise, temperature, health and age can all affect how much water you need to drink per day. For instance on a hot day you will want to drink more water to prepare for dehyrdration.

https://www.mymlc.com/health-information/articles/w/water-how-much-should-you-drink-every-day/?section=What%20about%20the%20advice%20to%20drink%208%20glasses%20a%20day?

Comments

I really like this factcheck I thought you did a great job allowing us to see both sides of the image. I like how you talk about how mayo clinic recommends drinking 8 glasses of water each night, and that there are plenty of health benefits that will come to you if you drink 8 cups of water each night. But I also really liked how you included that the article does not say that 8 cups of water is a daily requirement. When I looked into this I found similar results saying that you need around 4-10 cups of water per day range depending on your level of exercise but doesn't say anywhere that 8 cups is required. So overall I like how you did this fact check, and think you did a really good job on it!

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I like that you clarified the Mayo Clinic doesn’t call 8 glasses a requirement — that nuance is important. But I was a bit skeptical when you used that to suggest the guideline might not be useful. The same article actually recommends more than 8 glasses a day (about 11.5–15.5 cups), so if anything, 8 is conservative.

You made a great point about individual factors like heat and exercise affecting needs, but that doesn’t mean baseline advice is flawed — public health needs simple starting points, like “2,000 calories a day.” The real problem isn’t the rule, it’s people taking it too literally and forgetting food and other drinks also count toward hydration.

Answer 4

This claim is false because the original source just uses 8 glasses a day as a 'reasonable number' rather than a concrete number supported by evidence. Most sources claim that 4-10 cups of water are necessary for a healthy person, but this number is not the same for everyone to receive the same benefits, as well as avoid dehydration. According to Harvard Health (https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink) as well as the Mayo Clinic, the amount of water you need can differ based on activity level, outside temperature, age, and overall health. This shows that while 8 cups of water is not an untrue statement, it cannot be universally true because it is not the same for every person, and the amount of water needed is individual. 

Comments

I like that you used information from the original source, and added information from another reputable source. Great job with this!

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Great way to justify your information. I would agree as the article doesn't concentrate on a number as well like you've said, it all depends on the differences of people overall, so one choice won't be the same for everybody.

Answer 5

In the article the 8 glasses of water a day is mentioned, not necessarily suggested. Therefore, the claim is partially true but lacks context. Eight glasses might work as a general guideline, but hydration needs are highly individual. The most accurate approach is to monitor thirst, urine color (light yellow indicates proper hydration), and factors like activity and climate, according to the Mayo Clinic.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256

Comments

I can also agree that the article does seem to exaggerate as well as you've stated, providing further context. The idea to check urine color is also another way to further justify how many glasses of water exactly, are there any articles you found that would back up your thinking?

Answer 6

The article explains why water is important for your body—it helps keep you cool, supports digestion, and keeps your joints working smoothly. How much water you need depends on things like your activity level, health, and the weather. A general guide is about 15.5 cups a day for men and 11.5 cups for women, which includes water from drinks and food. It also warns that not drinking enough water can make you tired and affect your health. In this article by Harvard Health they show how it also just depends on everyone.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink

Answer 7

I found this to be somewhat true from the MayoClinic article you linked in. However if you read more into the article it talks about hydration, if you exercise, or have a fever, things that make you lose more fluid, you have to have a lot more water than 8 cups a day. Since I read this I decided to look for more information about this claim. As I looked through more sources, most of them said 8 cups was reasonable but some also said 4-11 cups. There really is no definitive answer to this claim, so I can't say it's true or false.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink

• by Howard E. LeWine,

https://www.everydayhealth.com/dehydration/hydration-calculator/

By

Kelly Kennedy, RDN, LDN

by

Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCES

Comments

I think you make a really good point — there isn’t a clear-cut answer, and I agree that based on the Mayo Clinic article, hydration depends on a lot of personal factors. I also appreciated that you looked into additional sources beyond the Mayo Clinic article. The fact that you found ranges from 4 to 11 cups shows just how much individual needs can vary. Your response helped reinforce that this claim can’t be labeled as simply true or false — it’s more about context.

Answer 8

This statement is partially true. Per https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/publications/health-matters/hydration-101-drinking-8-glasses-of-water-and-other-myths-debunked , it is depend on the individual. Some factors such as how active someone is, how much you sweat, and certain health conditions can all lead to varying consumption of water. Saying that you need 8 cups of water is a general blanket statemen. If you are interested in the specific amount of water you should be having per day, you should consult a doctor.

Answer 9

Upon further inspection, Mayo Clinic is an academic medical center dedicated to research in healthcare. So they're knowledgeable in this field. In this specific article, while the original claim in the article does stick to the eight glasses of water a day, it doesn't necessarily specify it's only 8. The eight glasses of water a day is a measurement average for people to easily remember themselves. As stated, "You've probably heard the advice to drink eight glasses of water per day. that's easy to remember, and it's a reasonable goal." This acknowledges that it would be more or less a reasonable goal for people. If you'd like more accurate information, though, the same article does provide exact measurements as well for both men and women. Stating women should drink 11.5 cups and men should drink 15.5 cups of water. Other articles also, like Harvard Health Publishing, agree further with this. claiming, "For healthy individuals, the average daily water for men is about 15.5 cups and for women about 11.5 cups." Overall, both articles can agree that it all depends on what the person feels is best for them at the end of the day.

Sources: Mayo Clinic

Harvard Health

Answer 10

The claim of drinking 8 glasses of water a day being essential for hydration depends very much on the person. Drinking water is very important for a person's health, however a person should only drink 15.5 cups of water for men, and 11.5 cups of water for women. A standard plastic water bottle holds 16.9 fluid ounces of water which equates to around two cups of water. So for a man you would need eight cups of water and for a woman you would need 6 cups of water. Also saying drinking 8 glasses of water doesn’t give an exact measurement of the amount of water a person can drink, since all cups hold a different amount of water. However some people may drink less or drink more. The amount of water a person needs is also reflected on their age, how active a person is, any possible health conditions, and gender. Overall the average person should be drinking around 8 glasses of water, but for one day if a person has seven cups or 10 cups they still are getting a sufficient water intake. If a person runs six miles in a day and drinks ten cups of water that is perfectly fine and a normal occurrence. Of course drinking too much water or too little water continuously is not something that should be kept up. 

https://www.arrowheadwater.com/products/spring-water 

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/how-much-water-should-you-drink