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Why does nobody talk about how bad the 'drinking 8 glasses of water' thing is

I used to believe the 8x8 rule for water was just solid health advice everyone should follow. Then I actually looked into where it came from after feeling gross forcing down water all day. Turns out that whole thing started from a 1945 government recommendation that said we need about 2.5 liters of water daily, but they included water from food in that number. A study I found on PubMed from 2002 by Heinz Valtin basically tore that apart and showed there's zero scientific backing for the 8 glass rule. Now I just drink when I'm thirsty and my kidneys are way happier. Has anyone else found an old health rule that turned out to be total junk?
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3 Comments
nina_hall48
Seems like a lot of fuss over something that's not really hurting anyone.
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paul_ramirez
Right, but bad advice normalized by decades of marketing is its own kind of harm.
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wren230
wren23012h ago
I read that Valtin study too. Completely changed how I hydrate.
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