A person can live about a month without food, but only about a week without water. If a human does not absorb enough water dehydration is the result.

A person must consume 2 litres of water daily to live healthily. Humans drink an average of 75.000 litres of water throughout their life.

Humans cannot drink salt water.

More than 2 billion people on earth do not have a safe supply of water.

Water regulates the temperature of the human body. If you have caught a fever you should drink lots of water.

Water removes waste from the human body.

You should never drink water straight from a lake or river, as it can be damaging to your health.

If you live in an old house with lead pipelines you could get health problems. Due to weathering of the pipelines lead can end up in your tap water.

Your drinking water may be fluoridated to help prevent dental cavities.

Water leaves the stomach five minutes after consumption.

Centres for Disease Control receive notification of more than 4,000 cases per year of illness due to drinking water contamination.

A quarter of the world's population is without safe drinking water.

Water can cause serious health damage when it is contaminated by bacteria and other microrganisms.

In most cities and towns, drinking water from the tap is treated so that people don't get sick with diseases such as cholera and typhoid, which are caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites found naturally in the water.