Drinking water is critical to our health yet poor drinking habits are rarely considered as a major cause of illness in younger people. My research shows that more than 30% of infertile couples drink three or less glasses of water each day. They have symptoms of dehydration such as loss of concentration, dizziness and fatigue, yet they don’t think to take a refreshing drink.
From 1989 to 1993, my laboratory conducted a study of 1,000 couples who were attempting to conceive. The women sent us a sample of urine each month that they tried to conceive so that we could do an early pregnancy test. As the specimens arrived I noticed that the laboratory staff were sorting the specimens into two groups. It soon became apparent that we could select the samples that were likely to be positive, just on their appearance. Clear, straw-coloured urine was likely to be associated with a positive result. As far as I know, dark or cloudy specimens were always negative.
Why is drinking water so important? About 50% of our body weight is water. All our body processes take place in water. Some cells have more water than others, but all parts of our bodies from our heart and eyes right through to our big toes have water. Even our bones have some water.
Water has some really important roles in moving things around our bodies. The most obvious are the watery fluids known as blood and lymph. Our red and white blood cells move through these fluids so we have better movement of oxygen and a stronger immune response if we drink more water. And a stronger immune response means that we are better protected against contagious infections. So called low grade infections are often found in infertile couples.
Water also provides juices for our digestive system. If we drink plenty of water, we break down our food more effectively and gain more nutrition from it. As a benefit we are also less likely to suffer from indigestion or constipation but from a fertility point of view, nutrients are critical to reproductive success.
Digestion starts in the mouth with saliva. It not only helps our chewing but also keeps our mouths clean, and reduces the chances of gum infection. Gum infections are known to play a critical role in premature labour so drinking water will also help protect against this.
There are many other beneficial effects for water on all our organs, including our eyes, but for fertility there are several specific advantages. Fertility involves efficient and well controlled cell division in both the man and the woman. Production of the eggs and sperm, fertilization itself and then growth of the baby, all require well-hydrated cells. Beyond this, there are specific effects that have to do with the small extrusions on cells that are known as flagella (each flagellum is a single tail-like structure) and cilia (a series of long extrusions on the surfaces of cells facing internal body cavities). The flagellum provides the sperm’s method of swimming. The cilia inside the woman’s fallopian tubes move the egg from the ovary to the uterus and is critical to its chances of getting fertilized and finding its way to the uterus. If the cilia can’t move adequately because of dehydration, there is a high chance of an ectopic pregnancy.
Water is so critical to normal male and female fertility, it is amazing that it is rarely mentioned. Start avoiding or resolving problems today by simply sipping clear, plain water.