Water is essential to drink. The cells in our bodies are made up of mostly water and depend on it to work properly. 6 Reasons to Drink More Water. Most people are dehydrated without even knowing it! Are you Dehydrated? The guideline for the amount of water varies, but I like the basic rule of thumb to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces. So, for a 150 pound person that’s 75 ounces. If you aren’t drinking that much water, work up slow to let your bladder adjust. 😉 If that still feels like way too much water for you, just go with another basic guideline of 8×8 ounces. Your body and cells will thank you!

I’ve heard a lot of people say they don’t like the “taste” of water (does water really have a taste? I digress). There are many flavored waters you can buy, but most of them are filled with sugar or artificial sweeteners, dyes or preservatives (always check labels no matter what the front of the package says. “Natural” or “sugar free” isn’t what you think). If you’re one of those people that needs flavor in your beverages, making infused waters is a great way to customize it to your favorite flavor and make sure to drink your daily amount of water! 

Basic instructions for making infused waters:

1) Choose your favorite combination of fruit, vegetables and/or herbs and/or spices (see below for recipe ideas). 

• Note: Use fresh to get the maximum flavor. Keep in mind that fresh herbs can be strong, so use those sparingly.   

2) Thoroughly wash your produce and cut, peel, slice or mash (for extra flavor) as desired. 

• Note: choose organic whenever possible; especially The Dirty Dozen

3) Add ingredients to a glass container and fill with filtered water. There are water infuser pitchers, but save money by using what you have on hand. Large mason jars work great! 

• Tip: Use coconut water or sparkling water to change it up. 

4) Let soak in the refrigerator overnight. 
5) Enjoy! You choose to keep the produce in your water (it looks so pretty!) or strain it for just the flavor. If you like a little more sweetness, add a small amount of maple syrup, honey or stevia.

The flavor combinations are limitless! These are basic guidelines; play around with the amount of ingredients to get the right flavor you want in your water. Citrus peels will get bitter over time, so you choose whether you want to keep them on or peel them. 

Infused Water Recipes:

1) Cucumber Mint
Slice (and peel, if desired) 1/2 cucumber and add a couple of fresh mint leaves

2) Raspberry Lime
1/3 cup raspberries (mash for extra flavor, but will get seeds) and slice 1 lime

​3) Strawberry Orange
Slice up several strawberries and 1 orange

4) Apple Cinnamon 
Slice up an apple and add in a cinnamon stick

5) Lemon Lime
Slice 1 lemon and 3 limes

6) Lemon Ginger
Slice and peel 1 lemon and peel 1″ of ginger.
Note: Ginger is quite strong when raw; peeling the lemon doesn’t add extra bitterness.

​For more recipe ideas and a great picture tutorial, go to the Nutrition Stripped website. 

What flavor sounds the best to you? Please comment below. Thank you for reading!