Adequate fluid intake is essential to living well and feeling your best at any age. As you grow older, you may lose some of your normal thirst sensations, putting you at risk for dehydration unless you make a conscious effort to drink more.
You need to drink at least four to six glasses of fluid daily, in addition to consuming foods that contain water such as melons and most vegetables. Luckily for the coffee drinkers out there, it’s only a myth that caffeinated drinks will hydrate you less well than caffeine-free ones, particularly when you’ve been consuming them for some time.
The volume of fluid found in most drinks is more than adequate to overcome the caffeine’s diuretic effect, if any is still present in habitual users, but you should probably go easy on espresso, which contains concentrated amounts of caffeine and minimal amounts of water. But keep in mind that too much caffeine can cause the bones to lose calcium, so the decaf options may be bet- ter ones for that reason alone.
Make certain to increase your fluid intake when you have a fever. If you get diarrhea, try to consume fluids containing calories rather than low- or no-calorie sodas. Also, remember that adequate fluid intake is by far the best con- stipation cure out there.
