Causes, symptoms, and treatment for dehydration
It happens even to the best of us and no matter how intelligent we think we are, sometimes we forget to be careful enough and completely fail to watch over our bodies. Yup, happened to me today and it was not fun. Not fun at all. Two days ago, I spent the whole day at the beach and no, I did not use any protection against the Sun so I had some skin burns. Nothing serious, just a red face and it even looks good on me. During those 12 hours on the beach, I had 3 cups of coffee and one glass of water. That is it.
CC0 licence, Pixabay, author: silviarita, adapted by me
Yesterday I went out with my friends and had some alcohol, not much. I did not get drunk or anything like that but alcohol dehydrates and besides shots and coffee during the day, I had nothing else for a drink. Today I went to the store in the middle of the day and had a 20-minute walk in the Sun. Somewhere around the middle of my walk, my body finally decided to tell me that I am stupid and should drink more water. It told me that with a headache so severe I thought my brain was going to explode, fatigue, shakings, elevated heartbeat and lack of energy. I managed to get home and my first reaction was to get all my clothes off, put cold towels on my skin, take a pill for the headache and start sipping water. This is not my first rodeo guys, I get stupid like this once a year, every year. So, to wrap things up, 3 days of Sun + alcohol + physical activity + coffee - water = dehydration. Some people never learn...
Dehydration happens when more water is moving out of individual cells than it is being taken into the body. When a person has lost enough fluid, the body begins to lose its ability to function normally and starts to produce symptoms related to the fluid loss. We lose water all the time in the form of urine, sweat, stool, tears and our breath even, while we exhale. With water, we also lose electrolytes which are critical in allowing cells to generate energy, maintain the stability of their walls, and to function normally.
There are many things that can accelerate our water loss beside the obvious not drinking enough water. Some illnesses like diabetes, vomiting, diarrhea, and infections can make us lose water and there are also these:
- alcohol
- coffee
- too much sweating or peeing
- salty and sweet foods
- too much Sun exposure
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism confirms that alcohol is a diuretic. When we drink too much of it, our bodies lose their ability to absorb water in support of hydration and an electrolyte imbalance is created. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an adult man drinking up to two drinks per day and a woman drinking one drink per day are within the limits of moderation and should be fine as long as their health is otherwise ok.
Liquid does not mean hydration.
Drink water.
Coffee has a similar effect on our bodies. Drinking some is good, drinking too much is not. When we drink two or three cups of coffee each day, we take in approximately 200 to 300 milligrams of caffeine and according to MedlinePlus.com, that amount is safe for us but if we exceed it, there is a great chance of dehydration.
Salt and sugar are the tricky ones. It is not always easy to recognize them in our food. Sure, in french fries and popcorn we can taste the salt but there is a lot of sodium in fast food meals, canned foods, deli meats, frozen dinners, processed baked goods and bottled condiments, and the sodium is the thing we have to watch carefully. There is a great way, and an easy one to make sure you do not get dehydrated:
Drink water, regulary, slowly
and without sugar or salt.
That is all we have to do, drink water. There is no super secret formula here, only water. Why do we always forget about those simple things that make us healthy?
Depending on whether the dehydration is mild, moderate or severe, there are a number of symptoms you can have. Some are pretty expected and some not so much. In severe instances, dehydration can lead to death because we all know that the human body can not survive without water for long. A study in Archiv Fur Kriminologie concluded that you can’t survive more than 8 to 21 days without food and water.
"In a very hot environment, an adult can lose between 1 and 1.5 liters of sweat an hour. A child left in a hot car or an athlete exercising hard in hot weather can dehydrate, overheat and die in a period of a few hours."
Randall Packer, a biologist at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
We often hear how a human being can not survive more than two days without water but that is just a rough estimate. Every body is different and two days is not really a precise time period, it can be much shorter for some people. According to National Health Service guidelines in the United Kingdom, severe dehydration starts when a person loses about 10 percent of their total weight to water loss.
Symptoms of dehydrations include:
- Extreme thirst
- Less frequent urination
- Dark-colored urine
- Fatigue, dizziness, and confusion
- Dry mouth and skin
- Severe headache
- Sleepiness
- Muscle cramps
- Fever and chills
- Bad breath
“If you’re not producing enough saliva, you can get bacteria overgrowth in the mouth, and one of the side effects of that is bad breath”
John Higgins, MD, an associate professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Texas in Houston and the chief of cardiology at Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital in Houston
So, as you can see, the list of symptoms does not look like something you would like to have. I experienced the chills, cramps, severe headache, thirst, fatigue, dizziness, confusion, and dry mouth. I have no idea what my urine was like because I have not peed for the entire day but when I finally did, it was fine so no worries there. Conclusion? I was stupid and I will try to be smarter in the future.
Depending on what your symptoms are and how severe they are, you will have to choose between taking care of yourself at home and visiting the doctor. The best approach here is to give yourself a couple of hours and if your symptoms do not go away then you are not in the mild or moderate area but in the severe one and the doctor is the way to go. This works for symptoms that do not involve you passing out or having a high fewer, of course. Here is what you can do to help yourself:
- cool yourself down
- take a shower
- have some medication to ease your pain
- drink a lot of water but by sipping it
- remove excess clothing or loosen it
The best advice is to have better prevention and avoid getting dehydrated in the first place. Sometimes we are just to busy to remember that we did not drink enough water. We should be careful with what we bring to our bodies and always drink plenty of water. I wonder, will I ever learn to follow my own advice? Hm... Time will tell. Speaking of time, I think it is time for me to have some more water...
List of rereferences for you to check out:
Dehydration from mayoclinic.org
Dehydration (Adults) from emedicinehealth.com, written by Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD
What is Dehydration? What Causes It? from webmd.com
6 Unusual Signs of Dehydration You Should Know About from everydayhealth.com, written by Nancie George & Kelly Kennedy, RD
How Long Can a Person Survive Without Water? from livescience.com, written by Rafi Letzter
What Foods Make You Feel Dehydrated? from livestrong.com, written by SUSAN LUNDMAN
What Drinks Cause Dehydration? from livestrong.com, written by SHEMIAH WILLIAMS
Until next time,
KEEP YOUR SMILE ON &
DRINK PLENTY OF WATER.
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Hey @zen-art
Great post and one I battle with daily. I clearly don't drink enough water in my daily routine and I'm sure their are consequences for not doing it. I am absolutely sure that my migraine headaches that I get have, at least in part, something to do with hydration. I have never really nailed down the causes but lack of water is one recurring theme.
The only time I drink water to any decent measure is when I step up my exercise regime of running, cycling and football. Then I am actively trying to force myself to drink water pre, during and post exercise. I'm sure it's still not enough though. I can't remember the figures but the recommended intake for someone that is moderately exercising is 4 liters + per day or something crazy.
I have an example of the body starting to shut down through heat and dehydration. When I used to play golf in Bahrain the temperature could be in the high 40's. When we started our round we would all be soaking wet with sweat. After about 5 or 6 holes you suddenly realise that you have stopped sweating and that you are dry. I guess perspiration is one of the first things to shut down.
Thanks for posting.
Cheers, Gaz.
Oh yeah, when you STOP sweating the thing has become pretty serious and headaches are very related to dehydration. I have read somewhere that when we feel thirsty, we are already dehydrated in a way. We should not have that feeling at all. If you are exercising you should definitely drink more. Stay safe and stay hydrated! Thank you for your lovely comment 💚
Yeah, I always forget to drink enough water too. It's just one of my many unhealthy bad habits.
(btw... noticed a small typo. "Fewer and chills" should probably be "Fever and chills")
Thanks for the help, I appreciate it. It is spelled correctly now 💚
As for the water, I was thinking about those apps that vibrate or notify you every hour or so to remind you to drink water. I am running out of ideas, lol, I know it sounds stupid but I have to try it, maybe it will help :)
A greta post and very apt to share now with the heat wave in many areas including where I am, I had a lot of meetings between buildings over the last few days and am struggling a bit I suspect with heat exhaustion, luckily today I could spend ost of the day at home and am cooling down and drinking lots of water so hopefully tomorrow I will feel a lot better
I hope you are feeling better now, cool yourself down and always have some water on you. If you see it, it will remind you to drink :)
@zen-art Ohh I am drinking like a madman, I will bounce back I am sure
Great article! I had to put reminders throughout the house to drink water because I always drank one or two glasses of water per day. Since I ensure I have my 2l daily, I feel better. My skin enjoys it as well as it's not that dry as before.
I think I need a lot of reminders, whatever I can get is beneficial :) I am looking forward to that skin benefit you mentioned. Much love honey 💚
Hey great article outlining important aspects of staying hydrated, but I would also think source of your water is very important too.
Reverse Osmosis water is very clean, absent of water treatment chemicals, There is very credible research done by harvard concluding that fluoride to cause significantly lower IQ's in affected children. and well within concentration levels found in many North American cities... If you check the mineral content analysis on bottled water it will have a value beside f ... 0 is best.
Be safe everyone and enjoy clean water!
Thank you for that information, I am glad you had something to contribute 💚
the migraines brought on by dehydration are soooooooo severe! ughhhhh
i hate when i allow myself to be this dehydrated
you sure did have quite the cocktail of bad choices to get so dehydrated!!! next time at LEAST sunscreen! hehehhehe
(even though i'm SURE you look super cute with your pink skin!) ;)
Yup, people say I am cute with it, I just hope the skin will not peal, that is irritating :) I will be more careful in the future, thank you for you love honey 💚
aloe!!!! pure aloe on that pink skin might save it hehehehee
I think you and I have talked about how serious I am about hydration. I live in the desert and even modest activity takes massive amounts of fluid. When I'm riding in the heat it just flows out of me and I really jam the water to stay upright.
That said, a couple of weeks ago I thought I was having a heart attack. My jaw and both arms hurt. I was producing gas in an incredible volume. My skin was clammy. The only reason I did not call the ambulance is because through it all my heart rate was good.
Turns out the diet I am following is incredibly dehydrating. My pee turned dark and I looked it up. Drink more water it said. Ahahahaha I already drink enough.
Well, I didn't. I added another liter and a half to my daily intake and all is well. I now have a half liter before my first cup of coffee.
Like you, I seem to need an annual reminder. It's never pleasant, but it is relatively easy to fix.
Thanks for a relatively timely reminder. 2 weeks ago would have been better for me personally :)
Hihihi, sorry I was late with the reminder, I will try my best to remind you of these important things on time from now on :D Drink that water honey, it seems like you really pushed your body to its limits, stay safe. Much love 💚
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the most widely recognized reason for lack of hydration and related passings. ... The body discharges excessively water, prompting lack of hydration. Spewing - prompts lost liquids and makes it hard to supplant water by drinking it. Perspiring - the body's cooling instrument discharges a lot of water.
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