It’s time to talk HYDRATION..... We all know how essential it is to life so why don’t we do it?? We water our plants; we wouldn’t drive our cars without water so why do we so often forget this in our own health?

As with all other homeostatic mechanisms in the body there are many messages being sent out constantly to let you know it’s time to hydrate. These start with whispers and end with shouts. Interestingly, thirst is more than a body whisper. By the time you feel thirsty your body is really trying to get your attention. We talk about this and more over in our 'Inside Membership' but this is just too important not to share. If you welcome one habit into your life, make it this one.

Studies have shown that a large number of the world’s population is inadequately hydrated (Manz, 2007). Every transportation and detoxification system in the body needs a constant supply of water. Blood is 81% water, urine is 95% water and urine is 99% water (Haas, 2006). Many of your major organs need water to function including your digestive system. Adequate hydration is essential to maintain blood, lymph, digestive juices urine, tears, sweat in the required concentrations and quantities.

Many factors influence water requirements. The climate where you live, your age, medications, your health, activity levels and the food you eat all play a part in how much hydration you need. A rough rule of thumb is 30ml per kilo body weight as a base level. If you are sweating from heat or exercise you will need more. Your main organs need water to function. Interestingly the regulation of your blood pressure and heart function are closely correlated with water intake too.

Hydration has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease over time (Manz, 2007) along with allowing the body to reduce toxicity through eliminations. Your skin and endothelium need hydration to maintain integrity and elasticity and your digestive system is made up of water-based fluids from your saliva to your urine including all the enzymes and chemicals we need along the way. When we are inadequately hydrated these functions become impaired and surprisingly it doesn’t take much before we have problems. As little as a 2% deficit can cause:

• Fatigue
• Confusion or short-term memory loss
• Mood changes like increased irritability or depression (Adan, 2011).

Ongoing mild dehydration can result in:

• Urinary tract infections
• Kidney stones
• Gallstones
• Constipation

And in the event of severe dehydration the symptoms are debilitating:

• Loss of skin turgor
• Confusion
• No urinary output
• Rapid heartbeat
• Fever and chills
• Unconsciousness

We have only had time to cover the basics of how important adequate hydration is for wellbeing.

If you want to dive into the physiology of hydration, we have include some great journal articles below in the reference list. There is a great article published in Psychology & Behaviour Journal entitled “Thirst and Hydration” (Thornton, 2010).

We also go through more info and hydration hacks in our Enhanced Insider Free Membership. No pressure just knowledge. Come join us!!

References

Ferreira-Pêgo, C., Guelinckx, I., Moreno, L. A., Kavouras, S. A., Gandy, J., Martinez, H., & Bardosono, S. et al. (2015). Total fluid intake and its determinants: cross-sectional surveys among adults in 13 countries worldwide. European Journal of Nutrition, 54 (Suppl 2), 35-43. doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-0943-9

Adan, A. (2011). Cognitive Performance and Dehydration. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 31(2), 71-78. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2012.10720011

Haas, E. (2006). Staying Healthy with Nutrition. USA: Random House.

Manz, F. (2007). Hydration and Disease. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 26, 535S-541S . doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2007.10719655

Thornton, S. N. (2010). Thirst and hydration: Physiology and consequences of dysfunction. Physiology & Behavior(1), 15-21. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2010.02.026