How Dehydration Affects the Body

Have you ever experienced dehydration? It produces harmful effects such as dizziness, headaches, fatigue, and more. Something you may not know about dehydration is that many people are walking on the line of dehydration every day.

What is Dehydration?

According to Mayo Clinic, dehydration is the result of not replacing lost liquids.

Your body needs water to carry out daily functions. Much of what we do every day is “using up” the water that we’ve taken in, such as sweating, performing physical tasks, and also simply living – your body is always using water.

Dehydration is limiting or cutting off the supply of water that your body uses.

Imagine you have a plant that you water every day with a pint of water. What if you started to only water it every other day, or use a 1/2 cup of water instead of a pint, the plant wouldn’t grow to remain as healthy. The same goes for your body – let’s “dive” in!

What Causes Dehydration?

Dehydration is caused by not replacing the lost fluids from your body. In a cut-down version – dehydration is caused by not drinking enough water!

It can be easy to slip into a semi-dehydrated state. If you’re like me, I can sometimes go the whole day with coffee and maybe some sweet tea as the only liquid that is consumed. That is not a replacement for pure water, it helps, but your body still needs daily pure water intake.

Think of it like being in a dusty room, one can still breathe, but you need fresh air to maintain good health.

What are the Signs of Dehydration?

Dr. John-Mark Chesney of Simply Physio in Knoxville, TN recently wrote an article about dehydration, he says,

“Signs of dehydration can include dry mouth, sleepiness, concentrated urine, headache, dry skin, dizziness, increased thirst, and decreased urine output. Severe dehydration can lead to more serious symptoms such as rapid heart rate, orthostatic hypotension (when blood pressure drops as you stand), fever, seizure, confusion, and poor skin elasticity.”

Not good.

Do you ever feel like you can’t get enough sleep? That you don’t have enough energy to make it through the day? Constantly drowsy? We’re not suggesting that drinking water is some “silver bullet”, but often times it can be. I’d encourage you to make a goal to drink even 32 oz. of pure water every day for 14 days, you might be surprised by how different you feel after those 14 days!

How Does Dehydration Affect the Body?

You might be surprised by what you’re about to read.

Referring back to the article by Dr. John-Mark mentioned above, dehydration affects your energy level and even your concentration! Dehydration can also cause sleepiness and lethargy. Even completing daily activities or exercising can feel impossible, due to dehydration.

Dizziness and lightheadedness are also common effects of dehydration. A lack of water directly affects your brain’s ability to function properly and at its best.

How to Combat Dehydration

You can and should get water intake through eating food; many fruits and vegetables are full of water, but the best way to replenish your body is through pure H2O.

Start carrying a water bottle to work every day! It can be a fun goal to have, start the day with a full water bottle, and make sure it’s empty by the end of the day.

Check out this infographic from Health Perch that gives some great advice on how to drink more water!

Survival vs. a Normal Day

If someone is caught in the wild, water is one of the top priorities to stay alive. But in our daily lives, it can be so easy to let it pass us by. DRINK MORE WATER! Your body will thank you.