We all know we should be drinking more water. While it’s an essential element we need for survival, it can still be difficult to know if we’re getting enough each day, especially on those hot summer days. Here are a few ways our hydration can impact our health, and a list of simple lifestyle tips for incorporating more water in your diet (spoiler: there’s more than one way to stay hydrated!).

Digestion: If we are not properly hydrated, our body cannot eliminate or detoxify efficiently. This leads to digestive issues like gas, pain, constipation and kidney stones.

Skin health: Our skin is very sensitive to hydration. When we aren’t getting a lot of water, this can present in the skin as dehydration, dullness, blackheads and breakouts. It’s important to make sure we’re drinking and absorbing enough water each day to keep complexion feeling soft, smooth and radiant.

Cognition: Our brain’s are 73% water and strongly influenced by hydration. Studies suggest that even minimal dehydration (like after a hot day or intense workout) can impair brain function, mood, cognition and increase headaches.

Energy: Without proper hydration, we are more susceptible to muscle soreness, tension and fatigue. Drinking enough water improves our muscle’s recovery time, and keeps us both awake and alert.


In practice I see a lot of people who tell me that drinking more water just increases their trips to the bathroom – this can be really inconvenient for most. We want to make sure that the water you’re drinking is getting used and absorbed into your cells for deeper hydration. Here are a few of my favourite tips for hydrating properly.

Start the morning off right: Make sure to start your day with a big glass of water, especially before you have any tea or coffee. You’re body works hard all night while you sleep and you usually wake up in a dehydrated state. Starting your day with a glass of water helps to kickstart your digestive system and give you an extra boost of energy.

Add a pinch of salt: Try adding a pinch of high quality sea salt to your water. Why? Salt is full of electrolytes. Water depends on electrolytes for proper absorption. You could be drinking all the water in the world, but if you aren’t getting the proper balance of electrolytes, your body may not be absorbing properly. I suggest using a sea salt or Himalayan pink salt.

Add fibre: Adding fibre into our diets is a great way to improve absorption. One of my favourite foods for hydration is chia seeds. These tiny seeds hold up to 30x their weight in water. Try making a chia pudding for breakfast or adding 1 tsp to some lemon water to help with hydration, healthy skin and digestive issues like constipation.

Eat your water: A really fun way to get an extra boost of hydration is through fresh fruits and vegetables. Water rich foods like lettuce, cucumber, watermelon, cantaloupe and strawberries are great to incorporate into your diet in the hot summer months to improve hydration.

Avoid overdoing caffeine: Caffeine is a natural diuretic, meaning it can easily dehydrate our digestive system. Make sure to drink more water to compensate for the dehydrating effects of these drinks.

With all of these tips you should be well on your way to improving your hydration naturally, this summer and beyond!

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