Can drinking more water really help you lose weight?

For years, drinking more water has been promoted as a simple way to lose weight. While staying hydrated is important for overall health, many people wonder whether increasing their water intake can actually help them shed extra kilos.

According to scientific research, the answer is yes but with important limitations.

A systematic review published in the journal Nutrición Hospitalaria analysed six randomised clinical trials involving adults who increased their water intake for at least 12 weeks.

Researchers found that participants who drank more water lost between 0.4 kilograms and 8.8 kilograms, with an average weight loss of 5.15% of their body weight.

The review examined different strategies, including drinking more water throughout the day, replacing sugary drinks with water and consuming water before meals.

Among these approaches, replacing calorie-containing beverages with water proved to be the most effective for supporting weight loss.

How water may help

The researchers say water may contribute to weight loss in several ways.

Replacing sugary drinks such as soda, juice or sweetened tea with water can significantly reduce daily calorie intake.

Drinking water before meals may also help people feel fuller, leading them to eat less during the meal. Some studies have also suggested that water may slightly increase metabolism and encourage the body to burn more fat, although these effects appear to be modest.

Water is not a magic solution

While the findings are encouraging, researchers caution that water alone is unlikely to produce dramatic or lasting weight loss.

The 2019 review concluded that the overall quality of evidence was low to moderate, largely because the available studies followed participants for relatively short periods.

“The quality of the evidence for the primary outcome of weight loss was rated low to moderate,” the study noted.

More recent research has reached a similar conclusion. A 2024 meta-analysis of eight randomised controlled trials found that simply encouraging people to drink more water resulted in only a small average weight loss that was not statistically significant.

However, replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with water was associated with a modest but meaningful reduction in body weight.

Current evidence suggests that drinking more water can support weight loss, especially when it replaces high-calorie beverages or is consumed before meals as part of a healthy eating plan.

However, experts agree that water works best when combined with a balanced diet, regular physical activity and other healthy lifestyle habits rather than being relied upon as a weight-loss solution on its own.

For anyone trying to lose weight, swapping sugary drinks for water remains one of the simplest, safest and most affordable changes they can make.

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