20 Signs: For Not Drinking Enough Water!
As you undoubtedly
already heard, the daily recommended amount of water is eight glasses or about
64 fluid-ounces of water. This is actually a myth, and most people can get by
fine by drinking water whenever they’re thirsty. Unfortunately, most people
around the world don’t drink enough water to compensate for water expulsion
through breathing, sneezing, talking, sweating, crying, and urinating. Symptoms
of not drinking enough water include feeling thirsty, obviously, but here are
20 other ways our bodies are screaming at us to drink more water.
Dark urine
Ironically, not
having enough water in your body can lead to frequent visits to the bathroom.
If you’re going to the bathroom up to 10 times a day and find the color of your
urine to be dark-yellow instead of clear or pale-yellow, then it might be one
of the ways your body’s needs more water. It’s either that or you’re taking a
certain medication that’s altering the color of your urine.
Muscle cramps
People will
experience extreme muscle cramps when they’re dehydrated but remain physically
active. This is a dangerous mix since you release more water through sweat and
heavy breathing. Experiencing muscle cramps or spasms in the middle of a
workout session might be an indication that you need to drink more fluids.
Mental
sluggishness
People suffering
from even the slightest case of dehydration will suffer slight bouts of mental
impairment. If you’re not drinking enough, concentrating on work might seem
like an impossible task, no matter how light your workload.
Headaches
Next time you
experience a headache, no matter how minor, trying downing a glass of water.
Our brains are about 80% water, and losing water causes our brain tissues to
contract, leading to pain around multiple areas of our brains. If after a glass
of water and/or pain meds doesn’t do the trick, you need to consult a doctor
immediately.
Dry skin,
mouth, and eyes
Our skin needs
water to produce natural moisturizing oil, replenish our tear supply, and
maintain a healthy saliva level. Not having enough water can impair all three
organs. Common symptoms that afflict these organs include a lack of skin
elasticity, dry coughs, and red eyes.
Lethargy
Mid-day naps are
great for giving us a much-needed boost of energy. However, if you feel even
more tired after waking up than before nodding off, dehydration might be the
culprit. A mid-afternoon slump can most likely be easily fixed by drinking a
couple more glasses of water daily.
Lack of
sweat despite physical activity
We sweat in order
to cool down during and after physical activity. However, if you’ve already run
laps but hardly broke a sweat, your body doesn’t have enough water to spare. Be
sure to take in a couple glasses of water before and after a workout.
Perpetual
hunger
Being dehydrated
can play tricks on our bodies. For instance, in extreme cases of dehydration,
our brains might perceive thirst with hunger. No matter how many snacks or
meals you eat, your hunger will never diminish. Be sure to end every meal with
a glass of water or organic juice to bring your fluid levels back up.
Smelly
breath
No matter how
disgusting you think it is, spit is actually beneficial for keeping our mouths
clean. We stop producing spit in our sleep, and this is what causes nasty,
funky morning breath. The principle is the same in cases of dehydration; if you
don’t have enough water, you can’t produce spit, forcing people to hold their
breaths when talking to you.
Moodiness
Since our mental
faculties become impaired when we don’t drink enough water, it’s not
unsurprising that we can experience mood swings. Dehydration leads to the
breaking down of several bodily functions, including rational thinking. When we
don’t drink enough, a simple “hello” from a co-worker might send you off the
rails.
Sugar
craving
This is most common
in people suffering from dehydration after a workout session. When cooling
down, you might feel the need to put food in your mouth. This is due to
decreased glycogen levels, and our bodies want to keep the sugar ratio balance
in check. Chocolate cake might be enticing, but it’s better to start off with a
couple glasses of water, just to see if dehydration really is indeed the
culprit of a sudden need for sweets.
Trouble
sleeping
Not having enough
water in our bodies can disrupt our sleep. Dehydration can lead to snoring and
muscle spasms in your sleep – two things that can jolt you awake in the middle
of the night. However, drinking water right before bed can wake you up by
forcing you to go to the bathroom, ruining your sleep cycle. Instead, drink
your body weight’s recommended amount of water before 8 PM; you’ll be
thoroughly hydrated but have expelled all the urine from your body before
climbing into bed.
Loss of
muscles
The muscles around
our bodies are mostly made up of water. Not having enough water can cause
muscle spasms and a loss of muscle mass. No matter how many weights you lift,
you might notice that you’re not getting optimal gains and might even be losing
muscle mass. Drinking a glass or two before and after a workout can help you
build your muscles right back up.
Prolonged
bouts of illness
Water helps our
bodies flush out toxins through urination, sneezing, and coughing. Without
sufficient water in our bodies, many of our organs will begin to deteriorate,
including our kidneys. What happens when we don’t have enough fluids to expel
these toxins is that our organs steal water from other areas of our bodies,
including our blood, which can potentially lead to a whole new range of health
problems.
Problems
digesting
Our digestive
tracts are lined with a naturally occurring mucus which helps move food down
the system and protects our organs from gastric acids. Without enough water,
the mucus lining will become thinner and less effective in moving food and
shielding our organs from the acids. Heartburn and indigestion will usually
occur after our stomach acids roam freely.
Accelerated
aging
We mentioned
earlier that dehydration can affect our skin due to the inability to produce the
natural moisturizing oils. What this can do is actually cause us to look a lot
older than we actually are. Looking young requires having enough fluid to keep
your moisturized, and long bouts of minor dehydration can cause premature lines
and wrinkles.
Weight
gain
Dehydration can
actually cause an increase in body weight. Without enough water in our systems,
our bodies will latch onto anything they can get from anywhere, including the
salty and sweet snacks you mistakenly ate to fight off thirst/hunger. You’ll
also increase your carb load through sweet or salty treats in the attempt to
reduce your thirst.
Aching
joints
Our joints are in
constant need of water to stay squishy and absorb shocks. The cushioning
between joints will deteriorate in cases of dehydration since they don’t absorb
water from other sources. Unexpected cracked knuckles might be a way that your
body is in dire need of hydration.
Cholesterol
imbalance
When we become
dehydrated, our bodies respond by commanding it to increase its production of
cholesterol. This thickens our cellular walls in order to retain as much
moisture as possible. As a result of this defensive mechanism, our blood
cholesterol levels will spike and become harder to maintain.
Respiratory
problems
From our noses to
our bronchi, the entire respiratory tract needs an ample lining of mucus to
prevent foreign bodies from passing into our lungs. Without proper hydration,
the mucus lining will become thin, allowing more and more airborne pollutants
to enter and reside in our lungs. This opens our lungs to a host of different
problems, including allergies and excessive, dry coughing.
Reference:
http://www.topgearup.com/20-signs-you-dont-drink-enough-water
Posted Coillected by
Doshti
www.doshti.com
