Effects That Dehydration Causes In Your Body

In addition to consuming fluids, we can also combat dehydration if we include foods rich in water in our diet. It is advisable to drink at least two liters of water a day.

How much water do you drink a day? Maybe not enough to avoid dehydration. Did you know that you can go 24 hours without eating any solid food? However, the body could fail if you go a day without drinking.

You have surely noticed more weakness on a summer afternoon than on a rainy day. If you are not used to drinking water and suddenly you go out on a sunny afternoon, do you know what could happen to you? You could face dehydration, you would start to sweat out the fluid in your body and you would start to feel tired.

This situation can have health effects. Fortunately, daily dehydration is mild and not usually a serious health problem .

Usually it only takes a good glass of water on time, or even a hydrating snack, like watermelon or cucumber, to reverse the damage. However, if you let dehydration progress, you will face some health problems:

1. Loss of athletic performance

There is a type of dehydration which is very severe. It is the strongest and, according to scientific evidence, can cause a malfunction throughout the body. It depends on the amount of water you start to lose from your daily activities.

The total amount of water in the body of a woman can be from 38 to 45 liters, and for a man – from 42 to 48 liters . If you are one of those who is used to exercising, here is this advice: you should weigh yourself a couple of times. Do it before and after you go for a run.

In this way you will know your sweating level. Take the following into account:

• If you lost between 1 and 2% of your body weight, it means that you are slightly dehydrated . It’s okay, you’re fine. Just remember to drink water to solve the lack.
• A loss of between 2 and 4% of your weight, indicates that you are moderately dehydrated and that some organs could begin to fail.
• If you lost 5% or more, you need to start worrying: you should never lose 11% of your weight. This is already a symptom of serious dehydration and the kidneys  they can start to fail.

Simply losing 1% of your body water can lead to significant drops in performance, according to a study published in 2019. For this reason, you should drink fluids every 20 or 30 minutes of physical activity.

2. Can’t control body temperature

The body generates heat with any movement you make, no matter how small. However, core temperatures are maintained by hydration.

When you are dehydrated, you do not have enough water in you. If you sweat, you could lose what little you have left to help the cooling mechanism.

Heat is trapped in the body because it cannot evaporate and the temperature continues to rise.

The moment you feel that your temperature is high, try to consume fresh water. It is advisable to avoid water completely cold because a temperature shock is created that could be harmful.

3. Stop sweating as a sign of dehydration

If the body is not sufficiently hydrated, it will not have much to expel through the pores. If you exercise, there will be a time when you do not expel any sweat and this is a bad sign. In fact, heat stroke is associated with a cessation of sweating with an increase in body temperature.

Sweat serves to cool the skin and expel  toxins.

4. The heart has to work more than necessary

Do you know which is one of the largest reservoirs in the body? The blood. This is strongly affected when you start to become dehydrated .

The volume of blood decreases, however the work of the heart increases. This situation can put you at risk, according to an article published in Sports Medicine magazine . Adem ace, those with hypertension and similar problems put their heart at greater risk.

5. Your urine will be dark in the setting of dehydration

A significant loss of fluids can make going to the bathroom impossible.

You will see that the times you go to the bathroom are considerably reduced and you will notice that your urine is dark yellow in color and has a strong odor . You should worry if this happens to you. It may also be brownish or reddish in color from dehydration.

Some people may also feel pain or burning. Remember that urine is a mechanism through which the body discards what it does not need. It is very similar to sweat and just as important.

Take a look at your urine, as this is the easiest way to tell if you are dehydrated.

Basic tips to combat dehydration

Now that you know the effects of dehydration, we will leave you some tips to avoid this problem:

• Consume 2 liters of water daily . At this point there should be no pretext and no skimp on it. This amount is recommended to keep you well hydrated and without problems. If you live in a very hot place you can increase the amount a little, but do not exceed 3 liters per day.

• Eat fruits and vegetables rich in water (l magnet, watermelon, pineapple, cucumber, bell peppers, green leafy vegetables, etc.). All these foods  provide you with a good amount of water and help to solve any small lack that you have at the moment.

When it comes to exercising, it is always positive that you plan your hydration carefully. Try to drink liquids every 20 or 30 minutes to avoid dehydration and drops in your performance. Also, once the session is over, you must regain the weight lost through sweat.