About two-thirds of our body consists of water. It's no wonder that you always have to maintain the water balance in your body by diligently drinking water. Having appropriate water intake can help you to get healthy hydration that can do wonders for your body.
What is healthy hydration?
Healthy hydration is the amount or volume of water that is sufficient and needed to create a healthy life. At a glance, children will need 6 to 7 glasses of water per day, and adults need 8 glasses of water.
The amount of water in the body itself can decrease due to a lack of water intake. If this happens, you will experience various kinds of bodily dysfunction.
What is the side effect of dehydration on our health?
Health problems caused by lack of water will depend on how low the water level is in the body. Symptoms that appear will be varied, ranging from mild to severe. This condition can also be life-threatening. Below are some health problems that can be triggered by low levels of water in the body because you don't have a sufficient amount of water.
1. General bodily dysfunction
Symptoms of lacking water in the body are categorized by the length of time the body lacks water. If you lack water in the short term, you will experience acute dehydration. But if it happens for some time, you will experience chronic dehydration.
Acute dehydration can trigger some of the following symptoms:
- Low blood pressure
- Feeling dazed
- Headache
- Difficulty to concentrate
- Weak
- Stiff muscles
- Chest and stomach pain
- Irregular rapid heartbeat
If you experience chronic dehydration, the symptoms that might appear are as follows:
- Constipation
- Urinary tract infection
- Bladder Stones (Calculi)
- Gallstones
- Hypertension
- Dental disease
- Impaired organ function
2. Decrease in brain function
When the body lacks water, cognitive functions in the brain such as the ability to concentrate and retain memory will be disrupted. In addition, you will also experience mood swings with marked drowsiness or decreased physical performance.
3. Kidney and urinary tract
As mentioned before, if you are lacking water, it will be easier for you to suffer from kidney and urinary tract problems. Lack of body water can trigger urinary tract infections due to factors such as decreased volume, flow, and frequency of urination. In addition, lack of water increases the risk of kidney damage and triggers bladder cancer. To avoid this, it is recommended that you increase your water intake so you can produce about 2.3 liters of urine every day.
4. Digestive tract
If you only defecate less than three times a week and the consistency of the stool is hard, it means you are experiencing constipation due to rarely drinking water. Constipation can also occurs when you experience chronic dehydration. Lack of body water can also trigger the formation of gallstones which are prone to causing serious complications.
5. Impact the skin health
Water is the main component of the skin. Thus, if you experience a lack of body water, the elasticity and firmness of the skin will decrease. In other words, drinking water can affect your skin and make it prone to get wrinkled.
6. Decrease in muscular ability
Muscle function is divided into strength, power, and endurance. When you lack water, your muscle function will experience limitations. Therefore, when you are currently active be it due to exercising or the need to work in the field, you need to increase your water intake more than usual.
Lack of body water is a condition that should not be taken lightly. Various kinds of body functions can decrease and it can even trigger health problems that are fatal to your health.
Make sure that you always have a water bottle within reach, thus you can have your water filled every time without worry. An effective way to improve hydration is by purchasing a water bottle and putting it anywhere you often spend time on. In your bedroom, kitchen, living room, and even at your office. This can be a practical solution, so that you don't have to be lazy to refill your water bottle on the tap. Check out www.myownwater.com to get your hands on water bottles in bulk at an affordable price. They have selections of water and bottle choices, thus you can choose based on your preference.
