The amount of water you should drink daily depends on several factors including your sex, age, activity level, climate, and overall health. General guidelines are:
- For healthy adult men, about 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) of fluids per day is recommended.
- For healthy adult women, about 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) of fluids per day is recommended.
- These totals include all fluids consumed, not just plain water, but also beverages like tea, coffee, and water-rich foods like fruits and vegetables
Other recommendations from health authorities include:
- The NHS suggests aiming for 6 to 8 cups or glasses of fluid daily
- The National Academy of Medicine recommends about 13 cups (104 ounces) for men and 9 cups (72 ounces) for women daily, with higher amounts for pregnant or breastfeeding women
- Water needs increase with physical activity, hot weather, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and certain health conditions
A practical way to estimate is to drink about half an ounce to one ounce of water per pound of body weight daily. For example, a 150-pound person might need between 75 to 150 ounces (2.2 to 4.4 liters) of fluid per day
. In summary, a typical adult should aim for roughly 9 to 13 cups of total fluids daily, adjusting upward for exercise, heat, or special conditions. Listening to your body's thirst signals and monitoring urine color (light yellow is ideal) can also help ensure adequate hydration.
