Water Needs, Water Insecurity, and Human Biology

Water links the environment, culture, and biology. Due to its inherent interdisciplinary nature, an integrative approach is needed to attain a complete picture of how water affects human biology. First, this review describes advances in human water needs, thirst, and hydration strategies from a biocultural perspective. Second, it provides a critical appraisal of the literatures on water insecurity (WI) experiences and coping strategies used to mitigate WI to illustrate how they intersect to affect human biology through the embodiment framework. Deviations from water needs and heightened WI can alter hydration and coping strategies, which have implications for a suite of psychological and physiological outcomes. These disruptions are embodied in cellular damage, dehydration, nutrition, stress, mental health, cognitive impairment, aging-related effects, cardiometabolic health, and kidney function. Disrupting forces like lifestyle changes and climate change have important implications for water needs, WI, coping and hydration strategies, and the embodiment of each.

Manuscript accepted at Annual Review of Anthropology

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Work Title Water Needs, Water Insecurity, and Human Biology
Access
Open Access
Creators
  1. Asher Yoel Rosinger
Keyword
  1. Water insecurity
  2. Human biology
  3. Hydration
  4. Thirst
  5. Embodiment
  6. Climatic variability
License In Copyright (Rights Reserved)
Work Type Article
Acknowledgments
  1. This work was supported by the Ann Atherton Hertzler Early Career Professorship funds and Penn State’s Population Research Institute (NICHD P2CHD041025). The funders had no role in the research or interpretation of results.
Publisher
  1. Annual Review of Anthropology
Publication Date 2023
Subject
  1. Human Biology
  2. Anthropology
  3. Water insecurity
Publisher Identifier (DOI)
  1. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-anthro-052721-090331
Deposited March 21, 2023

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Version 1
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  • Created
  • Updated
  • Updated Acknowledgments Show Changes
    Acknowledgments
    • This work was supported by the Ann Atherton Hertzler Early Career Professorship funds and Penn State’s Population Research Institute (NICHD P2CHD041025). The funders had no role in the research or interpretation of results.
  • Added Creator Asher Yoel Rosinger
  • Added AN52_Rosinger_Accepted.pdf
  • Updated Keyword, Publisher, License Show Changes
    Keyword
    • Water insecurity, human biology, hydration, thirst, embodiment, climatic variability
    Publisher
    • Annual Review of Anthropology
    License
    • https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/
  • Published
  • Updated Keyword Show Changes
    Keyword
    • Water insecurity, human biology, hydration, thirst, embodiment, climatic variability
    • Water insecurity, Human biology, Hydration, Thirst, Embodiment, Climatic variability
  • Updated
  • Updated Publisher Identifier (DOI) Show Changes
    Publisher Identifier (DOI)
    • https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-anthro-052721-090331