Struggling to Drink 8 Glasses Of Water A Day?

Fruit and Vegetables With High Water Content 

Not so long ago, health experts, nutritionists and researchers touted the “8x8 rule” for water consumption – or eight, 8-ounce glasses of water per day. The formula was easy to remember, but even die-hard exercise devotees may have found the total daily intake a little difficult to swallow: a total of 64 ounces of water per day, the equivalent of one-half gallon or 2 litres. But get ready for an update. The U.S. Reference Dietary Intake recommends that women drink 91 ounces of water (or 2.7 litres) and that men drink 125 ounces (or 3.7 litres) daily. No matter how much you may love water, it may be time to expand your horizons by digging into fruits and vegetables that boast a high water.

Your body is made up of 60 percent water, which may sound like a lot until you consider that these 15 vegetables consist of even more, or more than 90 percent water each. They are:

• Cucumbers Lettuce Celery
• Chinese cabbage (such as bok-choy) Radishes Watercress
• Zucchini and squash Tomatoes Bell peppers Asparagus Portobello mushrooms Swiss chard Cabbage Cauliflower Turnips

If you're wondering what happened to broccoli, it didn't exactly fall from grace. With a water content of 89.3 percent, it's No. 17 on the list (right behind spinach).

In general, fruits don't contain as much water as vegetables, but it still helps to have a napkin nearby when you bite into any of the fruits on the top 15 list. For example, No. 1 on the list, grapefruit, consists of 91.6 percent water while No. 15, oranges, consist of 86.8 percent water. Consider scooping up these watery fruits the next time you're at the store:

• Grapefruit
• Watermelon Strawberries Cantaloupe Honeydew melon Lemons Peaches Asian pearsBlackberries Papayas Nectarines Prickly pears Pineapples Plums* Oranges

If your favorite fruit is the apple, don't worry; it falls next on the list, with a respectable water content of 86.7 percent.

The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults should eat 2 cups of fruit and 2.5 cups of vegetables per day. These goals apparently fall short of reality, however, with research suggesting that the actual numbers are 1.1 cups and 1.6 cups, respectively.

No matter how you divide it up – how much water you drink and how many water-rich fruits and vegetables you eat each day – water supports your body by fortifying the body's 11 organ systems, from the cardiovascular and digestive systems to the skeletal and urinary systems. Specifically, water:

• Helps deliver oxygen throughout your body Keeps your temperature normal Prevents dehydration
• Lubricates and cushions your joints* Protects your spinal cord
• Blocks the development of kidney stones
• Helps keep you regular by ushering waste through your intestines
• Reduces the severity of headaches* Can fill you up before meals and aid in weight loss
• Can blunt skin disorders and the formation of wrinkles

Article Source -  M.T. Wroblewski