Stay Hydrated With These 15 Foods
Stay Hydrated With These 15 Foods
There is a lot of literature out there that states you need to drink approximately 8 glasses of water a day. To some this seems unachievable, but here’s the catch. You don’t have to drink 8 glasses of water a day, you can stay hydrated with these 15 foods. Roughly 20% of our daily water intake comes from solid foods, especially fruits and vegetables.
It is still very important to drink water, especially on hot days. You can also quench your thirst with these 15 delicious and hydrating foods. These high-water-content foods are refreshing, filled with nutrients, and naturally low in calories
1. Cucumber
This amazing vegetable has the highest water content in any solid food -96%. Used in salads or sliced up and served with dips
2. Celery
Like cucumbers, celery has a high content of water. With a 95.4% water and just 6 calories per stalk, it’s a great choice of snack to have to curb your appetite. This lightweight veggie is packed with folate and vitamin A, C and K. You can eat it raw or cooked.
3. Radishes
These root vegetables with its spicy flavour area great addition to salads. They are filled with antioxidants such as catechin also found in green tea. Moreover, they have a 95.3% content of water.
4. Tomatoes
This bright fruit is loved by many and a staple in many kitchens around the world. Tomatoes have 94.5% and best there are so many varieties – cherry and grape varieties. You can use them as snacks, use them in salads, sauces and soups.
5. Cabbage
Cabbage has a 92% water content and it’s a very healthy vegetable high in fibre and nutrients. It is rich in vitamin C, vitamin K and folate. It can be used in salads and if you like you can make sauerkraut which might benefit your digestive health
6. Green Bell Peppers
Not all peppers are created the same, from all the bell peppers, the green pepper has the most water content which is around 92% water. Although less sweet than their colourful siblings they contain just as many antioxidants.
7. Cauliflower
This unassuming pale veggie is often ignored but don’t let it fool you as it has a 92.1% content of water keeping you hydrated without you reaching for that glass of water. It is packed with vitamins and phytonutrients that have been shown to help lower cholesterol and fight cancer, including breast cancer. Break it up and dip it in hummus or grate it and make it into cauliflower-rice and alternatively add it to a salad.
8. Watermelon
Watermelon is one of the most hydrating foods you can eat, it has 92% water content. A 1-cup (154-gram) serving contains over a half cup (118 ml) of water, in addition to some fibre and several important nutrients, including vitamin C, vitamin A and magnesium. It is also quite low in calories, providing only 46 calories per cup.
Because of its high water content and low-calorie content, watermelons are often a good choice for weight loss as they reduce appetite and promote fullness.
You can add watermelon to your diet by consuming it as a refreshing snack or side dish. It’s also commonly used to make salads.
9. Spinach
Adding spinach to your omelette provides you hydration with a pile of nutritional values. Spinach is rich in lutein, potassium, fibre, and brain-boosting folate, and just one cup of raw leaves contains 15% of your daily intake of vitamin E an important antioxidant for fighting off the damaging molecules known as free radicals. Spinach has a 91% water content which is another great choice of food for when you want to watch your calorie intake.
10. Strawberry
Strawberries have a high water content, 91% water content, making them a very hydrating food. Eating them will contribute to your daily water intake.
This sweet and delicious fruit provides lots of fibre, disease-fighting antioxidants and vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C, folate and manganese. Strawberries can be used in smoothies and salads.
11. Broccoli
Like its cousin the cauliflower, broccoli has a high content of water (90.7%) and is high in nutritional value. High in fibre, potassium, Vitamin A and C. It also has a significant amount of sulforaphane, a potent compound that boosts the body’s protective enzymes and flushes out cancer-causing chemicals.
12. Grapefruit
This citrus fruit aside from having a 90.5% water content, it can help lower cholesterol and shrink your waistline, research suggests. The researchers say that compounds in this tangy fruit help fuel fat burn and stabilise blood sugar, therefore reducing cravings.
13. Baby Carrots
Unlike their full-size cousins, baby carrots have more water than their full-size carrots, about 90.4% water content. The ready to eat factor is hard to beat. Snack on them or dip them in your favourite dip or add them to salads.
14. Rockmelon
This succulent fruit is 90.2% water and about one-quarter of the melon contains just 50 calories but delivers your recommended daily intake of vitamins A and C. Not bad at all.
15. Oranges
This sweet treat makes the perfect after-workout snack. It quenches your thirst and helps replenish electrolytes.
Electrolytes are minerals that are essential to a healthy body. They are positively or negatively charged molecules that your body uses for muscular contraction, maintaining the amount of water in your body and the pH of your blood. Electrolytes are lost through sweat
Oranges are comprised of 87% water, contains more than 100% of your daily recommended value for vitamin C as well as plenty of potassium known to help the body restore its fluid levels.
Staying hydrated is extremely important for your overall health. If you are anything like me, drinking glasses of water is a real struggle and it is great to know that your water requirement can be achieved via eating these foods.
So as long as you are eating plenty of water-rich foods and drinking water when you feel thirsty, you won’t have a problem staying hydrated.