How to Avoid Dehydration
75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated, meaning they don’t get enough water. On average, eight to 10 cups of water is the recommended amount of water each person should be drinking a day. Most people consume less than three cups of water a day.
Hello, and welcome to this Mometrix lesson on dehydration.
The Importance of Hydration
Before we can jump into why it’s bad when we are dehydrated, we should explore why it’s necessary for us to have water. Water helps with numerous bodily functions. Some of these functions include digestion, brain function, joint movement, body temperature, distributing oxygen, development of body fluids and more. With water being such a key component to our body’s success, it’s absolutely essential that we take in the right amounts per day.
When we consider that about 60% of the human adult body is comprised of water, it’s easy to imagine that depriving our bodies of water can have some big consequences. Let’s look at a few causes for dehydration of the human body. For starters, drinking very little water throughout the day is a key cause for dehydration. Dehydration is, after all, when more liquids are leaving your body than they are going in. More causes for dehydration are excess sweating, colds and viruses, overexertion of energy in workouts, living in thin air, and more. Each of these are just a few ways for our bodies to become dehydrated.
Hydration Levels
When evaluating your hydration levels, there are a few different signs you can look at that give this information away. When you go to the restroom, for example, if you’re urinating less frequently throughout the day and your urine is anything but clear, you are probably heavily dehydrated. Have you noticed yourself being more tired than usual or having achy muscles? What about noticing that your lips are more chapped than most days? These are also signs that your body is dehydrated. Dizziness, a foggy mind, and increased heart rate are other signs that a person has become dehydrated. Not treating dehydration can result in severe dehydration which can be fatal if the person does not receive a proper amount of fluids in a timely manner. A normal person can last anywhere from about three days to a week without drinking water.
An obvious treatment for dehydration and severe dehydration is drinking enough water. If eight to 10 glasses just isn’t your thing, you can always be intentional about eating hydrating foods such as cucumbers, watermelons, or almonds. Additionally, if you’re not a fan of regular water, coconut water and Aloe Vera infused water are some of the most hydrating beverages you could put into your body. Another good habit to get into is the practice of keeping a bottle of water handy at all times. Whether you are on the way to school, in the hallway, at home, or working out, always be sure to keep an extra bottle lying around. This same warning applies to when you are cooped up at home over a cold or the flu. When your body is sick, drinking enough water will help it to get better.