How Dehydration Can Affect Your Health And Wellbeing

Hydration is important for general health and healing

Staying sufficiently hydrated can be challenging, especially when you’re busy and have endless to-do lists and responsibilities. However, drinking plenty of water is really important for your health and wellbeing. 80% of our body is water, and it’s designed to work that way. If your hydration levels begin to dip, it can have some serious impacts on your wellbeing. While it may start subtly, the effects of dehydration can soon become serious.

Making a conscious effort to stay hydrated during the day can positively affect how you feel both mentally and physically.

Ensuring you are hydrated is vital for a range of body functions, from improving digestion to cushioning joints for greater mobility and protecting your organs and tissues. If you’re looking to stay healthy and mobile, then upping your water intake is a fantastic way to start. 

Mental Effects Of Dehydration

Among the early signs of mild dehydration are tiredness and lack of concentration. Many people fall into the trap of relying on caffeine to deal with these symptoms. While caffeine can give you a short-term boost, it’s not curing the problem. Instead, it can mask the feeling of tiredness, but you’d be much better off reaching for a glass of water. If dehydration was the cause of your problem, then drinking water will be a much more effective solution. (Sipping throughout the day is often more sensible than drinking a huge load in one go: It can overwhelm the kidneys.)

A surprising benefit of hydration is the calming benefits it can bring. Dehydration can exacerbate symptoms of stress which can increase anxiety levels and even depression. Drinking water is not only good for the body but good for the mind too.

Wellbeing Effects Of Drinking Water

Making small lifestyle changes can have big effects. Deciding that you’re going to drink more water is a great example. It’s a conscious choice to do a better job of looking after yourself. Making your wellbeing a priority is important.

Drinking more water has direct health benefits, but the decision to drink more water can help you feel better about yourself. It feels good to make healthy choices, and this is an easy one.

Remember, if you typically don’t drink much water now, you don’t have to jump straight up to a 2-litre target. Instead, consider the tiny habits you can implement to make it easier, such as having a glass of water as soon as you wake up or setting a few phone reminders throughout the day to remind you to take a few sips from your water bottle.

How To Stay Hydrated

The guidance that you might have heard being thrown around is that you should drink between 6-8 glasses of water a day. This is an excellent starting point, but it’s not a fixed rule.

The most important thing to be aware of when it comes to hydration is that your needs will vary. Many factors affect your hydration levels. If the weather is hot or you are physically active, then you’ll need to replace a lot more lost fluid.

You don’t have to rigidly stick to a particular number of glasses a day. You should, instead, get into the habit of listening to your body. Early indicators of dehydration include thirst, dry mouth, tiredness and headaches. But one of the clearest indicators of your hydration level is the colour of your urine. If your urine is clear or pale, then you’re getting enough water. If it’s a darker yellow, then you need to be drinking more.

Remember that drinking water isn’t the only way to up your hydration levels. Opting for moisture-rich fruit such as watermelon can be a fantastic hydration top-up, as can herbal teas, soups loaded with veggies and refreshing smoothies.

Putting Hydration At The Forefront

It’s incredible how such a small step can create such a significant and positive impact on your physical and mental health and wellbeing. By remaining aware of dehydration and helping to prevent it can work wonders for your physical and mental performance, as well as normalising blood pressure and heart rate and improving your energy levels.  

If you want more support in improving your health and wellbeing, Connective Chiropractic is here to help. To find out more, get in touch with the team today.