6 weird signs that you need to drink more water

Water gets a lot of attention, and for good reason. The average adult body is 60 percent water, and H2O is crucial for nearly every bodily function. This includes regulating temperature, delivering nutrients to cells, lubricating joints and eliminating waste.

While you probably don’t need to down six Stanley tumblers per day, staying hydrated is incredibly important. And when you’re not drinking enough water, your body will let you know. The issue? The signs you’re not drinking enough water aren’t always so obvious.

We spoke with registered dietitians to find out not just how much water we should aim to drink per day and the “weird” signs that you’re not getting enough.

How much water?

The exact amount of water you need to drink daily isn’t a one-size-fits-all number.

“It really varies depending on the climate you live in,” registered dietitian Kim Shapira says. “If you’re in a humid environment or a dry one, you need more water than people in more balanced climates.”

That said, Shapira does have some advice for setting your hydration goals.

“We get water in our fruits and vegetables, starches and milks,” she points out. “But I like to have eight additional cups of plain water to help our body run efficiently. If you work out in hot sun for longer than two hours, I recommend adding electrolytes to maintain your hydration status.”

“On average, people get about 20 percent of the water they need from food, which leaves about nine cups to drink for women and about 13 cups to drink for men,” adds Kristie Leigh, a registered dietitian and director of nutrition and scientific affairs at Danone North America.

“A good rule of thumb is drinking half of your body weight in ounces of water each day, plus 16 to 20 ounces for every hour of exercise,” says Maura Donovan, a medical education specialist in sports nutrition at Thorne. “For example, if a person weighs 150 pounds, they would need 75 ounces of water at baseline, not including additional hydration to account for exercise.”

Donovan also notes that pregnant people and athletes who have been sweating excessively may “require more water to maintain a healthy balance.”

“Think of yourself as a plant,” Shapira suggests. “If your plant could talk to you, would it say that you’re already dehydrated or that you’re thriving?”

In terms of how your own body tells you it’s thirsty, the signs may not always be obvious. Here are the most unexpected symptoms of dehydration.

Signs you need more water

You’re craving sweets more than usual: According to registered dietitian Ashley Koff, founder of The Better Nutrition Program and author of the upcoming book “Your Best Shot,” sugar cravings can be a sign that you’re not drinking enough water. This is especially true if you’re not normally someone with a sweet tooth.

You’re grumpy for no apparent reason: Remember those Snickers commercials with people acting out of character because of hunger? As it turns out, being dehydrated can also make you feel not like yourself, Shapira says. If you’re experiencing mood swings or otherwise unexplained crankiness, try chugging some water and see if you feel any better in a few minutes.

You’re spacing out on basic things: Did you miss a turn on the drive to work that you take every day? Leave wet laundry in the washer even though you heard the jingle? Take 45 minutes to finish something that normally takes you 10?

According to Tara Schmidt, lead dietitian at the Mayo Clinic Diet, another sign you need to drink more water may be one you actually associate with COVID-19 and long COVID instead of dehydration: Brain fog. If you find yourself generally thinking a little more slowly or forgetting things, try to think back to the last time you had a drink of water. If it’s far enough back that you can’t remember, drink up and see if your short-term memory and concentration improve.

You’re sluggish: According to Donovan and Shapira, if you’re moving about your day more slowly and sleepily than usual, even if you had a full eight hours of z’s the night before, dehydration may be the culprit.

You’re constipated: Shapira says that if you’re feeling irregular in more ways than one, it may be a sign that you need to drink more water: One often ignored sign that you’re not hydrating enough is constipation.

Your face looks and feels off: Hydrating your skin doesn’t involve just slathering on moisturizer. If the rest of your body is dehydrated, your skin and lips will likely be tight, flaky and dry too, Donovan says.

Two other signs of dehydration you may notice in your face, according to Leigh, are sunken eyes and “skin that doesn’t immediately flatten back out after being pinched, often called the ‘pinch test.’ ”

That lack of elasticity is a sign that your skin — and your body — are very thirsty!

How to tell if you’re hydrated

This one is pretty easy for most people.

“One of the easiest ways to gauge your hydration status is to look at the color of your urine,” Leigh says. “If it’s colorless or light yellow, you’re likely drinking enough water.”

“Pale yellow is a good sign of adequate hydration,” Schmidt concurs. “Anything darker or more concentrated is likely a sign to drink up.”

Koff says there’s another bathroom habit that you can use as a litmus test for your hydration levels.

“You can do my ‘Are you a hose or a sponge?’ experiment to see if you absorb water effectively,” she explains. “You want to see if after drinking eight to 12 ounces of water, how long it is until you have to pee. If it’s less than two hours, you likely need to work on absorbing water,” she says, noting that adding electrolytes to your diet can help.