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Is it OK to drink water instead of eating?

The bottom line. We should all be drinking plenty of water every day, but not in lieu of eating! The Mayo Clinic suggests drinking nine beverages a day—if you want to make them cold to try to shed a few extra calories, go right ahead. But if you want to lose weight and keep it off, a water diet is not the way to go.

today.com - Water diet: Is it really a good plan for weight loss? - TODAY

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There are two kinds of diets: healthy and unhealthy. A good diet helps you adopt a healthier lifestyle, keeping you active and eating good-for-you foods, not cutting you off from essential nutrients. Anything else might promise quick weight-loss results, but spoiler alert: you'll just end up gaining the weight back. A water diet is no different.

glass of pouring fresh and cold water featurePics

What is a water diet?

It's one of the dieting trends, with many variations that all have one thing in common: they're extreme. You don't eat and only drink water. Some water diets tell you to drink water for a few days, but let you add in fruits and vegetables once you've begun to lose weight. Other water diets allow you to have apples with your water. "It's just another name for fasting," says registered dietitian and co-founder of Appetite for Health, Julie Upton, R.D., C.S.S.D.

Related: Does drinking more water keep the weight off?

If you're a healthy person, a few days of fasting probably won't hurt you, according to Upton, but it's a bad way to lose weight. "You'll be so hungry and just revert back to your normal eating patterns after trying this and you'll gain any weight that you lost," she says.

What are the risks of a water diet?

When your main (or only) intake is water, your body loses crucial nutrients it needs. The short-term result is that you will lose a lot of weight, most of which will be water not fat, says Upton. "You lose more muscle compared to people losing weight from a recommended calorie reduction of 500-800 calories per day from their normal intake. What this means is that [once off the water diet] you'll have to eat much less [to maintain weight loss] because your metabolic rate will have dropped significantly." And if you don't get enough water while fasting, you risk side effects like dehydration, which can result in dizziness, fainting, constipation and headache, just to name a few.

What about a cold water diet?

It's not actually a diet—there are no restrictions on what you eat, the only stipulation is that water must be cold when you drink it. The body burns extra calories heating up ice-cold water to the normal body temperature of 98.6 degrees. (The colder the water the more calories burned). Drinking plenty of water also leaves you you feeling fuller longer, making you less inclined to overeat. And water flushes out any toxins that build up in the body.

Related: Is sparkling water bad for your teeth? Dentists weigh in

The bottom line

We should all be drinking plenty of water every day, but not in lieu of eating! The Mayo Clinic suggests drinking nine beverages a day—if you want to make them cold to try to shed a few extra calories, go right ahead. But if you want to lose weight and keep it off, a water diet is not the way to go. "Skip this fad and lose weight and tone up the way that works: Cut out lazy calories (added sugars, saturated fats) and exercise," says Upton. "You'll feel a lot better and it's more likely to last." A version of this story originally appeared on iVillage and was published in June 2013.

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Can you count coffee in your daily water intake?

Coffee and tea also count in your tally. Many used to believe that they were dehydrating, but that myth has been debunked. The diuretic effect does not offset hydration.

webmd.com - What Counts as Water? How to Stay Hydrated - WebMD

Water doesn't get the same media attention as green tea, antioxidants, and the latest fad diets. Yet it plays a much more critical part in our daily lives and our bodies. Our bodies are made up of about 60% water, and every system depends on water. So water is important for healthy skin, hair, and nails, as well as controlling body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. "It's definitely essential," says Jim White, registered dietitian and personal trainer in Virginia Beach, Va., and American Dietetic Association spokesman. "What we're finding is so many people are deficient," he notes. "We're seeing a huge decrease in athletic performance and fatigue that's caused by the lack of hydration." You can stay fully hydrated throughout the day by drinking water and other fluids, as well as eating foods that are hydrating.

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