It may be obvious to remind you that staying hydrated is all about drinking more water, but for some people that can be fairly challenging. Whether it’s due to the lifestyle they live or not building up a habit of drinking water regularly, there could be many factors that affect this. Dehydration can affect you all year round, and when it is cold outside many people feel there is less need to hydrate after exercise, but this could not be further from the truth.
One factor could be underestimating the effects of dehydration on the body. In fact, very common things such as headaches and dry skin can actually be overcome by simply drinking more water and staying hydrated.
The Risks of Dehydration
Dehydration can often lead to some serious complications such as low blood pressure, a rapid heart rate, kidney stones and even shriveled skin. These symptoms build up over time, turning into serious complications that many people would simply attribute to getting older or other illnesses and conditions. Here are some of the more concerning complications that could develop as a result of dehydration:
- Swelling of the brain due to replenishing the body’s cells with too much water after a period of dehydration
- Seizures caused by an imbalance of electrolytes in your body
- Low blood volume shock which occurs when low blood volume drops your blood pressure and oxygen in the body
- Kidney failure which makes it difficult to remove excess waste and fluid from your blood
- Heat injury if you lack enough fluids in your body
Having enough water in your system goes a long way in helping you overcome some serious health issues. Problems like headaches and dry skin are usually dealt with by taking painkillers or applying moisturiser, but this is simply dealing with the problem on a surface level. In order to truly overcome those issues (especially if they’re recurring) it’s important to look at your body and your nutritional intake.
Dealing With the Risks of Dehydration
If you’re suffering some a condition as a result of dehydration, simply drinking more water isn’t going to do the trick. Instead, you’ll have to consider remedies for the specific problem. For kidney stones, chanca piedra is best taken in extract form. For heat injuries, you may need to cut down on activity and allow your body time to absorb water. If you lack electrolytes in the body, then supplements will help you recover faster.
However, if you’re only experiencing mild effects then you can aim to drink more water throughout the day. It’s important to understand that you need to sip water and give your body time to absorb it. As such, you’ll want to keep a bottle or glass of water close to you and sip at it to keep your body hydrated.
While many physicians recommend drinking a certain number of glasses of water each day, it can differ depending on your diet and your body. There’s a much easier way to determine how much water you need to drink; look at the color of your urine. If it’s a dark yellow or orange, you need to drink more water. If it’s pale with a hint of yellow, then you’re plenty hydrated and should stay at that level of liquid intake.