This refers to the article "Drink plenty of water to keep stones at bay" (GK, 12-11-2012), wherein it has never been recommended to take plenty of water. But Dr. Anil Ramachandran has recommended to take adequate water when one passes normal colour urine. The title is not in tune with the body of the article. The intake of more water gives rise to more urination, which ultimately gives rise to loss of ions which pass through urine i.e. Potassium, Calcium, Sodium, Ketone bodies, Urea and Urates etc, and they are very important for the body. The intake of water wholly depends on the requirement as during winters there is no sweating and water loss is less so the intake also is less. The amount of 1 ml water/kcal of energy expenditure has been the recommendation since 1945 (WHO guidelines for Drinking water). The Tropical Agriculture Association has published water requirements for humans, animals and irrigated crops, given as litters per year (http://www.taa.org.uk). The minimum water requirement for fluid replacement for a 70kg human in a temperate zone equates to 3L per day, or 42.9mL/kg. Minimum requirements for an individual of the same size but in a tropical zone equates to 4.1 to 6L/day, or 58.6 to 85.7mL/kg.

Dr. Younis Munshi
Assistant Director
Regional Research Institute of Unani Medicine, Srinagar

Lastupdate on : Tue, 13 Nov 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 14 Nov 2012 00:00:00 IST