It's estimated that approximately 75% of Americans suffer from chronic dehydration ^[1]. Considering we're made up of roughly 60% water, this is a startling statistic to learn about the current state of our health and wellness^[2]. Thus, it's important to understand how to stay hydrated so that your body can function at its highest caliber.

Our bodies depend on water for many functions, especially detoxification. You see, we're exposed to hundreds of toxins each day that we absorb from our environment, food supply, household cleaning products and the air we breathe. When these toxins aren't properly flushed out of our bodies, they can accumulate in our tissues and digestive tract and cause several undesirable health symptoms. Toxins rob us of our energy, lead to digestive upset, age us faster than we can blink and impair our natural defense against illness and disease.

But impaired body detoxification is only one problem associated with dehydration. In fact, some of the most common health symptoms we experience on a daily basis are directly related to dehydration. These symptoms underscore how important it is to stay hydrated each day:
- Irritability
- Fatigue
- Low energy
- Constipation
- Bloating
- Confusion
- Brain fog
- Dry skin
- Sunken eyes
- Muscle cramps
- Premature aging

Even bad breath and difficulty concentrating have been linked to dehydration ^[3]. So, could dehydration be causing your health symptoms?

Next time your energy is low, or you can't concentrate at work, try guzzling back a few extra glasses of water and see if you notice a positive difference. But, don't wait until you're thirsty to drink water. By the time you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated ^[4].

The amount of water you require will depend on your activity level, your diet (whether or not you eat a lot of high water content fruit and vegetables) and the amount of coffee or alcohol you drink each day, as both substances are dehydrating. The general guideline for drinking water is 8 glasses each day, although there's no solid proof that 8 glasses is the right amount for everyone. A general equation you can base your water intake on is: your body weight in pounds / 2 in ounces. For example, if you were 130 pounds, 65 ounces of water each day would be the approximate amount of water to aim for each day.

Now, it's understandable that with our typical busy lifestyles and chaotic routines, it's easy to forget to drink enough water. But staying hydrated throughout the day should always be a top priority since water contributes to helping us feel our best.

The following tips teach you how to stay hydrated and add more water to your busy routine so you can feel energized, refreshed and rejuvenated each day.

Put a glass of water on your nightstand before you go to bed and drink it first thing in the morning.If you want to set your day up for success energy-wise, don't forget to hydrate before you head straight for the shower. Since water is one of the best natural energizers and "brain power” enhancers on the planet, why not start your day off with hydration?

The easiest way to remember to drink water before you get your day started is to place a glass of water on your nightstand (far away from the snooze button) before bed. You can even add a squeeze of lemon to your water for extra digestive and detoxification support, as well as an antioxidant vitamin and mineral boost.

Drink a green smoothie in the morning.
Fruit and vegetables are another easy way to stay hydrated. Having a green smoothie for breakfast in the morning will not only increase your water intake, but will also provide you with extra nutrients for energy and natural detoxification.

A few of the essential green smoothie ingredients I recommend are romaine lettuce, berries (fresh or frozen), Sun Chlorella granules, frozen pineapple, avocado, celery, fresh mint and lemon or lime juice.If you're looking for a green smoothie recipe that has a great taste and incorporates plenty of antioxidant vitamins, minerals and hydrating ingredients, you may love our Chlorella Pina Colada green smoothie recipe. With the refreshing tropical taste, it doesn't taste "green" at all.

Buy a water bottle you like (and carry it with you).
There's something about a good looking water bottle that makes you want to drink more water. If you have a water bottle you love, you're more likely to carry it with you on your morning commute, and to and from running errands. I can also guarantee that you'll be more likely to remember to fill it up throughout the day.

I recommend purchasing a water bottle that's BPA free, and ideally made from stainless steel or glass. Many plastic water bottles contain endocrine disrupting chemicals such as Bisphenol-A (BPA) that can leach into your drinking water and get absorbed into your bloodstream. BPA can upset your body's delicate hormonal balance and may even promote cancer, so it's best to avoid plastic whenever possible.

Ask for a glass of water when you buy your coffee, or order alcohol.
If you can't imagine giving up your morning cup of coffee or post-work happy hour cocktail, that's okay. Just be sure to order a glass of water to go along with your bevy of choice to stay hydrated. Most coffee shops and restaurants will offer up a glass of water at no extra charge, and since you're already ordering a drink, you might as well kill two birds with one stone.

Increase your fruit and vegetable intake.
As mentioned above, fruit and veggies are a perfectly acceptable way of staying hydrated. Choosing to snack on fruit such as apples, pear or a few slices of watermelon, is an effortless way to increase your daily water intake (not to mention the several natural vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients you'll also receive to promote your health and wellness). The same rule applies for vegetables, especially peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, lettuce and leafy greens.

Add flavor to your water with homemade vitamin water.
And lastly, one of the easiest ways to remember to drink more water is by making it taste incredibly delicious. Unfortunately, store bought vitamin water can contain up to 25 grams of white sugar per serving, which often accounts for only half of the bottle. Sure, there will be some water in storebought vitamin water to help you hydrate, but the detrimental impact white sugar has on your body isn't worth it. Besides, the richest source of organic vitamins is from foods that are found in nature.

For this reason, I recommend making your own vitamin water at home. Not only will you be able to control all of the ingredients that go into your vitamin water, but you'll also save a few dollars in the process.Making your own vitamin water with fresh fruit and herbs will also replenish your electrolytes that get depleted, such as potassium, which you lose through sweat during the hottest months of the year.

Since summer happens to be the season where fruit such as berries, melon and cherries are in season, how could you resist jazzing up your water with mouth watering natural vitamin combinations?

These natural vitamin water combinations are easy to make and can be customized to suit your tastebuds any way you'd like. You can simply use the flavor combinations listed below as inspiration for your own delicious superfood vitamin water creations.

To make homemade vitamin water, all you have to do is thoroughly wash and chop the fruit and vegetables, add your ingredients to a glass mason jar, fill with water and top with ice cubes. It's optional to stir in a natural sweetener such as Sun Wakasa Honey (which also provides additional nutrients such as Chlorella Growth Factor), or add a few drops of green leaf stevia to your vitamin water if you'd like to make it slightly sweeter.

Watermelon Mint
Ingredients:500 ml filtered water
½ cup watermelon cubes
3 fresh mint leaves
Juice of a fresh squeezed lemon or lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Raspberry Lemonade
Ingredients:
500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen raspberries
The juice of 1 lemon
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Blackberry Mint
Ingredients:500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen blackberries
5 fresh mint leaves
The juice of 1 lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Pineapple Ginger
Ingredients:
500 ml filtered water
½ cup frozen pineapple
1-2 inches of fresh grated ginger
Juice of a fresh squeezed lemon or lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Strawberry Lime
Ingredients:
500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen strawberries
Juice of 1 fresh squeezed lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Cucumber Grapefruit
Ingredients:500 ml filtered water
5 cucumber slices
4 grapefruit slices
3 mint leaves
Juice of a fresh squeezed lemon or lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Strawberry Basil
Ingredients:500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen strawberries
4 fresh basil leaves
Juice of 1 fresh squeezed lime
3-4 ice cubes
Optional: Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Blueberry Kiwi 
Ingredients:500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries
4 kiwi slices
Juice of 1 fresh squeezed lime or lemon
3-4 ice cubes
Optional:Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia. 

Peach Basil Mint
Ingredients:
500 ml filtered water
½ cup fresh or frozen peach slices
2 fresh basil leaves
2 fresh mint leaves
1 inch ginger
Juice of 1 fresh squeezed lemon
3-4 ice cubes
Optional:Add a boost of antioxidants with Sun Wakasa Honey or lightly sweeten with 1-2 drops of green leaf stevia.

About Brandi Black, RHN
Brandi Black is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist from Vancouver, B.C. Experiencing her own health challenges at a young age led her to become passionate about educating on the healing properties of food, and how to achieve hormone balance, clear skin and sustainable weight loss naturally. In her spare time you'll find Brandi writing in her blog and hanging out with her teacup chihuahua, Coconut.

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Sources: 
[1] http://www.medicaldaily.com/75-americans-may-suffer-chronic-dehydration-according-doctors-247393 
[2] http://water.usgs.gov/edu/propertyyou.html 
[3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2908954/ [4] https://www.bcm.edu/news/sports-medicine/thirsty-you-are-already-dehydrated