1. Water is an essential component of the human body. The human body is made up of about 43% to 75% of water - depending on age, body fat, etc [if fat is taken out of consideration, the nominal water content is about 72% of body mass - according to this source]. You could probably survive for 4 to 8 weeks without food (source), but it is estimated that lack of water could cause death in about 10 days, at room temperature (source).
2. Water acts as a nourishing agent. Water circulates through the blood and helps transport nutrients and oxygen towards organs and cells. It acts as a solvent for many nutrients and essential salts and makes them available for absorption by the body.
3. Water is a cleansing agent. It also serves as a medium to carry metabolic wastes away from the body - this is accomplished in the form of urine and sweat. Think of it as a detoxifying agent. This is one of the most important functions of water in our body (although not very highly appreciated often in daily life).
4. Water helps reduce the risk of kidney stones. The kidneys filter out waste products from the blood and channel them out of the body through the process of urine formation. Increasing concentration of certain salts in the urine increases the risk of kidney stone formation - and in most cases this risk can be reduced by drinking a lot of water and diluting the urine. It is usually recommended that adults prone to kidney stones should try to drink about 12 eight-ounce glasses of water everyday (normal adult recommendation is about 8 glasses).
5. Water helps reduce the risk of sunstroke. Water is the single most important factor in the highly critical function of regulating your body temperature. On sunny days, we sweat (in other words - excrete water) more and the evaporation of the sweat has a cooling effect on the body. In the absence of sufficient water (when dehydration occurs) in your body, this temperature regulation breaks down and body temperature increases - and this leads to sunstroke. Severe sunstroke has the potential to damage your vital organs.

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