<h2><p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2; background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial; color: #333333; font-weight: normal;">The old saw about drinking eight glasses of water a day for overall health is widely considered a myth.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2; background: white;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">But research over the years has suggested that drinking extra water helps the kidneys clear sodium, urea and toxins from the body. And in the past year, two large studies found a lower risk of long-term kidney problems among people who drink more water and other fluids daily. <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/07/really-the-claim-drink-eight-glasses-of-water-a-day-to-protect-the-kidneys/?ref=water" title="Really? The Claim: Drink Eight Glasses of Water a Day to Protect the Kidneys">More</a></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">(Source: The New York Times)</span></span><span style="font-size: 18pt;"></span></p></h2><p>&nbsp;</p>