New Magic Diet Potion? Water

It's not the flashiest of diet drinks, but two glasses of water before meals seems to do the trick, a new study suggests. Researchers from Virginia Tech instructed a group of dieters to drink two glasses to start each meal. At the end of a 12-week-period, they each lost an average of 15.5 pounds, while those in a control group who were given no such instructions lost 11, Time reports.

Anecdotal evidence abounds that water can help one lose weight by curbing the appetite or the urge to reach for sugary drinks, but the VT study is the first to demonstrate a measurable benefit. In fact, scientific studies about the health benefits of water are surprisingly scant, notes Time. Even the much-publicized claim that a healthy person needs eight glasses a day has no scientific evidence to support it.
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