College is interesting when it comes to best friends.

You may want to keep your high school best friend, make a new best friend out of your roommate, or find a significant other to be your best friend.

But, I say make water your best friend. Unlike the other options above, it will never let you down.

Water won’t make you jealous, kill your bank account, cause a hangover, or ruin your night.

In other words, water is the perfect best friend you’ve always wanted.

While I’m partly being sarcastic, I genuinely believe in making a conscious priority to consistently drink water each day. Here’s why:

1. Happier mood. Dehydration negatively affects your mood and causes you to feel sluggish. Give your body enough liquid to feel happy.

2. Increased energy. Speaking of feeling sluggish, a hydrated body will give you energy so you can avoid fatigue. Use this extra energy to go to the gym, where you can get rehydrated with more water! Or couple a heavy dose of water with these easy healthy meals for college students to go 100% the entire day.

3. Healthier and better looking skin. Your skin is made up of a large amount of water, which it needs to properly replace old skin cells to bring new cells to the surface. Girls and guys who want beautiful and well-textured skin should start by drinking plenty of water.

4. Maintain or lose weight. Drinking water doesn’t make you lose weight in itself, but you can drink water to replace the high calorie sodas in your diet. Also, when you think you’re hungry, many times you’re actually thirsty. A glass of water can ease your stomach so you don’t fall for the unhealthy snack and potentially risk getting fat in college.

5. Reduce risk of cancer. Drinking more water can reduce the risk of bladder cancer, since the water will quickly flush out the cancer-causing agents in urine. The short-term and long-term health effects of staying hydrated are as clear as water (I’m not that funny).

6. Prevent and relieve headaches. Headaches are often a direct result of dehydration. You can simply drink water consistently to prevent many headaches. And if you do get one, reach for a glass of water first before Advil.

7. Balanced body fluids. Around 60% of our body is water, and crucial systems like body temperature, saliva, digestion, and transportation of nutrients rely on this liquid to do their job. No one enjoys a doctor visit based on something we can directly control.

8. Save money. I’m a big supporter of focusing on making more money instead of cutting expenses, however water is free at restaurants and many other locations. If someone says your cheap for getting water, tell them it’s not a financial decision but a health decision.

9. Less of a hangover. If you know you’re in for a long weekend, drink plenty of water before. And if you forget to prepare, water will be your morning hero to help your deadly hangover.

Tips To Drink More Water

Now that you’re hopefully on the water bandwagon, you will need solutions to consistently drink water throughout the day. This is what works for me:

• Carry a reusable water bottle with you basically everywhere you go: class, a meeting, the library, your friend’s place, and the gym.

• Since it’s easiest to drink when you’re eating, aim to finish one glass of water for breakfast, and two glasses of water for lunch and dinner. Do this and you’re already at five glasses of water every single day.

• Eat foods with high water content in them, like fruits, vegetables, oatmeal, and beans. This is a great hack to get more water without drinking it.

• Check the coloring of your pee when you go to the bathroom. Clear urine signals you’re hydrated, and the more yellow your urine is the more dehydrated you are. 

• Start intermittent fasting and drink water during the fasting periods.

• Use the free DailyWater app to keep track of your performance and to set helpful reminders throughout the day.

Readers, how many cups of water do you drink each day? Is your problem forgetting to do this in your busy schedule? Do you have an extra tips to drink more water? I’m always looking to learn more.