Stop before you sip: Is the type of water you’re drinking safe?

You must drink plenty of water. How much? Well, it depends on different factors – including age and gender. According to the United States National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, men should drink 3.7 liters (15.5 cups) of water. And women should drink about 2.7 liters (11.5 cups) of water to keep themselves hydrated.

It is a fact that not a single formula can be true for everyone. By knowing more about what kind of liquid you are pouring inside your body, you will get to know how your body tends to react towards different kinds of fluids and beverages.

You should also be aware of the types of water you are drinking. Yes! You read it correctly. There are many types of water that we drink usually without knowing where it has come from.

We will explain about different types of water later in this article, but first, you should know how and when drinking water will be beneficial for your health. And also, how it can trigger health hazards if you drink it improperly.

Before moving on to the next part of the article, why not have a glass of water?

Does drinking leave overnight water change anything?

We all often drink leftover water from the bottle that we keep at our office table. Here, the question is:  Is it safe to drink that water that has been left over there overnight?

The taste will tell you everything. 

Well, if you have left your bottle or the glass of water uncovered overnight, then you should not try to drink it until it’s clean and clear. It might taste different due to carbon dioxide present in the air. This happens when you leave your glass of water uncovered overnight, and carbon dioxide in the air begins to mix with water molecules. The taste gets changed due to the reduction in the pH level of water. If you find something in water, then obviously you should avoid drinking it.

Furthermore, many scientists believe that tap water can be stored for up to six months, but not after the period elapses, it becomes undrinkable. This is because after these six months, the chlorine present in water begins to dissipate, allowing fungi and bacteria to grow. You may witness fungi and bacteria in the water earlier than six months if you live in warm areas.  

Drinking uncovered water

If you want to drink uncovered water from the bottle in your fridge or from the glass you left on the table, you must give it a second thought. Do remember that uncovered water is not safe to drink because of the carbon dioxide. Moreover, if the water is left uncovered for a longer period of time, then you might not know how many dust particles may have gotten mixed in your glass of water.

Drinking water from a plastic bottle

You should avoid drinking water via plastic water bottles that are left in the car. When plastic bottles are left in the car, the plastic of the bottle starts leaking BPA (Bisphenol A) when it gets warm, thus making water harmful to drink. Other than this, when we drink water from a plastic bottle, the dead skin, sweat, and the bacteria from our saliva are mixed in water, which ultimately makes the water dangerous to consume.

There’s nothing like water in the world that quenches our thirst. It plays an important role in your daily life. Not only it keeps you hydrated, there are a lot more other health problems that can be treated just by drinking an adequate amount of water regularly. On average, it is recommended to drink eight glasses of water in a day.

You already know how water can be used to avoid health-related complications. But knowing how to drink water is equally important.

Why you should not drink water while standing

We all gulp down water right after we get back home, often in a standing position, thinking that it won’t be bad to drink water this way. As soon as you get out of this state of mind the better it will be. You will be shocked to know that you would not get the nutrients of the water when you drink water while standing straight. If water is not consumed properly, then it can trigger health problems rather than curing them.

What is the right way to have water?

If you really want the water to help your body detoxify so that you get all the minerals and vitamins present in the water, it’s important to know the correct way of drinking water.

As you know that our body is made up of 70% of water, it releases water in different ways. To fulfill the requirements of a body to regain the lost water level, you have to drink it the right way.

When you gulp down water while standing without having breaks, the water goes straight to the kidneys to get passed, without reaching to other organs, and without doing the job it is supposed to do. Thus, impurities that are assumed to be washed out with water will remain there for a longer time, if the practice continues. Drinking water while standing also disturbs the balance between your body and nervous system, triggering dangers of stress and depression.

Therefore, to avoid any of the complications mentioned above, try drinking water slowly and – most importantly – in a sitting posture.

Now, you know how to drink water, let’s move to some basic types of water you may have known.

Types of water

Tap water

Tap water can be found in bidet showers to the water that comes from your kitchen sink to cleanse your dishware. People often turn their noses to actually have the taste of drinking tap water due to the safety and purity concerns.

What becomes hilarious to them is if they are told that tap water is actually safe to drink and also much cheaper to get instead of buying expensive water bottles. 

Mineral water

As the name suggests, mineral water is loaded with essential minerals such as Magnesium, Sulphur, and Calcium. Based on personal preferences, people like to choose it over tap water for drinking. Due to the presence of a large number of minerals in the water, it helps in digestion and cleanse impurities from your body.

Glacier water

Glacier water is fresh water that is available in streams. According to the theory, glacier waters are free from toxins and comparatively clean from other types of water chemicals. The water from streams and glaciers is said to be more nutritious and purer.

Its availability in the stores under the well-known brand names including Arrowhead and Evian.

Sparkling water

Often called soda or carbonated water, sparkling water is infused under pressure with carbon dioxide. It gives your mouth a fizzy taste, if you want to change the taste, you can have sparkling water which gives a carbonated taste without any added artificial flavor.

Distilled water

Distilled water is one of the types of water we get after collecting water vapors, and then these vapors are condensed back to the state of water.

Distilled water can be a great relief when you are visiting somewhere where there’s a chance of water contamination or the water supply is possibly scarce.

Purified water

Another type of water that is treated with chemicals to cleanse it from bacteria, parasites, and fungi is called purified water.

Usually, tap water or groundwater that is full of impurities – is cleaned through filtration or straining. It means that if you live in a place where there is contaminated water available, you can consume purified water without any doubt.

Infused or Flavored water

Infused or flavored water is one that is sweetened by adding artificial flavors or natural sugar. If you want to fill up your stomach with water to meet the daily requirements, then you can drink infused water. Why? Because the flavors like Propel and Hint make it tasty.

There are different flavors of infused water available in the market. You can always have a variety of flavors to choose from. You can also add flavors by mixing fruits in water.