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Water for Weight Loss?

posted by Dr. Brent Nov 24, 2008 7:00 am
Water for Weight Loss?
19 comments

Q: Can drinking water really help you lose weight?

A: If you are overweight because you eat too fast, drinking water before you sit down to eat can help you feel fuller sooner and may help you reduce the amount of food you eat. If you are a mindless eater, constantly reaching for anything because you are bored or nervous, keeping those things out of reach and your water at arms length can definitely help cut your caloric intake.

Is water a magic potion that is going to rev up your metabolism and melt calories away? Unfortunately, it’s not.

Dr. Brent Ridge is the health expert for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. You can call and ask him a question live every Tuesday at 2 p.m. Eastern on Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 112 (1.866.675.6675). You can also follow along as he learns to grow his own food and raise goats on his farm in upstate New York by visiting www.beekman1802.com.

Got a health question for Dr. Brent? E-mail him at drbrent@care2.com.

More on Ask Dr. Brent (122 articles available)
More from Dr. Brent (127 articles available)

19 comments

19 comments

add your comment »
19 comments add your comment
Vural K.

thanks...
Kabin

Konteyner

Eric Dean

Here's what I have found works best: In lieu of drinking water before a meal -- in case it does wash away necessary digestive enzymes -- begin each meal with a large salad which both provides high water content but also precludes overindulging the rest of the heavier meal. Be sure to include high water content veggies throughout the rest of the meal such as steamed broccoli. I have been told drinking a full glass of tepid water one hour AFTER the meal (allowing time for digestive enzymes to permeate the meal) helps wash fats and calories out of the body before being absorbed. Staying hydrated also helps the body from maintaining water (puffiness). (unless you have a health condition that causes your body to retain water then you would not want to consume more) In summary drink lots of water, stay hydrated and your body does what it does best, keeps us healthy.

khalid q.

well definitely anything in excess is bad. Depending on your body type and other circumstances you should drink water. Your body has built in system which let you know, if you are paying attention how much is too much or too little. Drink water based on that. But drinking water before you eat will definitely help you control weight. It’s not some kind of magic, you have to be active and eat right but just doing that and drinking green tea instead of coffee or tea can greatly help

rose w.
  • rose w. says
  • Nov 30, 2008 7:55 AM

I drank sparkling water on a regular basis, as I found it more appetising than plain water, and I hate sugar and sweetners - both other evils - so, working in a dry, hot environment drank approx 1 and a half litres- daily. This was making me puffy eyed and fingered on a morning, and lethargic too, yawning all day after 9 hours of good sleep, sometimes still by evening. I found this out by drinking no water while off work for a week, just tea, so when the symptoms went away, worked it out. I had fibroids too, thankfully operated and cured of, thank god,so was previously thinking that this was all the work of pms, and so all being part of being a woman. I'm vegan too, so any lager - being fizzy - or wine which by the way being allergic to alcohol as well , I need to take care of which brands I have as a vegan and suffer the consequences, and enjoying a drink is another problem! One spray of perfume brings me out in a rash, but alcohol on a regular basis over a prolonged amout of time has this and worse effect eventually! what is happening inside of me, I don't know. P.s Lots of plain water can make you ill as you can flush all the sodium out of your system. The effect is dramatic! Sparkling water also leaches calcium from your system.

rose w.
  • rose w. says
  • Nov 30, 2008 7:32 AM

Beware sparkling water!

Amy W.
  • Amy W. says
  • Nov 26, 2008 7:17 PM

I can definitely affirm that drinking water helps alleviate headaches. Can you imagine that when I was a little girl I actually knew this instinctively? Yeah, a little kid had this figured out. Can you imagine that when I was still too short to reach the sink myself and asked for water, my mother insisted on giving me "juice" or kool-aid when I really just wanted plain old water? I'm thinking even now about all those parents who set their kids up by being a bad example by drinking a lot of sodas and sports drinks and giving a lot of this stuff to their kids. Why would a mother want to argue with a kid who really just wanted plain clear water? I can only imagine that some parents probably wish they could get their kids to drink good old fashioned unadultrated water--what we were meant to drink all along.

khalid q.

we were told 1400 years ago by prophet Muhammad, drink water before your meal, make three equal parts of your stomach
1.water
2.food
3.empty (stop eating before you are full upto your neck) leave some room
also eat with your hands and lick your fingers after you finish, if any one follow these steps he could eliminate lots of digestive problems and can maintain proper weight

Sally H.

I replaced my other drinks, added exercise, and kept a food diary and lost 45 lbs! I think that water is a great way of adjusting your diet so that you are not getting as many calories, plus if you get regular headaches it can help with that! and a lot of people find that when they think they are hungry they are actually thirsty, and in turn drinking water can let you avoid that extra food! And some of the other commenters, I drink water with every meal and have never had indigestion from it! water is supposed to aid digestion (but thats 1 glass not 3 or 4!)

Nicole J.

I drink water with every meal and never have indigestion. Then again, I am vegan, so I don't put my body through the strain of trying to digest muscle tissue and dairy.

Angela B.

I am not a "drink before or during a meal" drinker. I have heard liquid washes down emzymes that help digest food. I would think drinking water INSTEAD of having a meal would be even better. Fasting is just not for a religious experience-drinking nothing but water for 24-48 hours cleanses the body of alot of the bad stuff that has "collected". Once a week fasting from heavy meals-just fruit, is a really good thing to do. My question is how much healthier is bottled water or is this kind of the deal with someone selling bottled air to breathe? Know what I mean?

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