Water intake doesn’t directly cause weight loss, but it’s key for feeling your best and may affect appetite, satisfaction, and metabolism in ways that are still being studied.

One way that drinking water can aid weight loss, however, is by helping you achieve a calorie deficit, as it contains no calories and is the healthiest drink you can choose, he said.

Recommended daily water intake varies by age, sex, activity level and body size, Acosta said. General public health ...