Trending Insights Why You Still Feel Dehydrated After Drinking Lots Of Water

We all know the importance of imbibing H2O and have the harrowing, prophylactic tales of wrangle with dehydration (usually linked to particularly noteworthy hangovers ) to prove it. Those lessons were learned the hard way and set the foundation for the long-term relationship with our emotional support H2O bottle we’ve since been nurturing. But piece we’ve committed to drinking our weight in water—and accepted the many,manytrips to the bathroom that result—we can’t say we always feel particularly well hydrated. Regardless of how much H2O we dutifully consume, the thirst persists.

Thankfully, this be angstrom unit passably common occurrence and can fall out for angstrom few reasons ranging from your body’s need to internal imbalances. To better understand the situation, we radius with expert medico and dietitians astir hydration.Here’s everything you demand to know.

Why Is Hydration Important?

It’s no secret that hydration be important—we hear about this a lot. But there’s less information floating around on thewhybehind it all. “Good hydration be critical for the functioning of our bodies,” explicate Linda Anegawa, a doc at the virtual wellness platform PlushCare. “Water in our bodies ensures that our blood go around adequately, waste material are removed efficiently, organic structure temperature is regulated through sweating, and hormone and signaling molecule postulate by the nervous system are produced.”

Dana Cohen, AN internal and integrative medicine physician and author of the bookQuench, say stay hydrated be the bingle most important thing one can do to treat and prevent chronic illness. “It is the baseline of all homeostasis inch the body,” she says. “It modulate physical structure temperature, information technology be an energy source, and it keeps our cells, fascia, joints, skin, and brain lubricate and inch motion.”

How much Water be Enough?

Before you’re able to address dehydration, you need to understand the basics of stay hydrated. Although everyone has slightly different needs, according to our experts, the simplest rule of thumb when determine how much H2O to drink each day is todivide your weight in half and drink that amount in ounces. In other words, if you weigh 140 pounds, you’ll want to drink around seventy ounce of water each day. That’s astir niner glasses, Beaver State a few refill of your Hydro Flask.

But that regulation isn’t set in stone—you May need Sir Thomas More OR less H2O depending on your diet, medications, the environment you live in, toxic exposures, activity levels, and other factors. Foods that contain A lot of water tin can glucinium hydrating as well, soh you May not demand to drink As much to stay hydrate if you’re eating a lot of produce like cucumbers, strawberries, watermelon, celery, and other hydrating fruit and vegetables:

“If you eat the recommend 5 to seven portion of vegetables daily, you can probably consume Sir Thomas More like 75 percent of the advocate water for your weight, and be well hydrated,” says Caitlin Self, angstrom licensed dietitian/nutritionist. “So if angstrom 150-pound individual hour angle A veggie-packed salad every day, carrot and cucumber for A snack, and two portion of vegetables with dinner, he OR she mightiness only need 50 to 60 ounces of water daily.”

Signs of Dehydration

If you’ve of all time be dehydrated, you’re no unknown to some of the common sign and symptoms—headaches, fatigue, dry skin, constipation, stiffness, brittle hair, urine thats dark inch color, and musculus cramps.“If you’re not urinate frequently, that’s another sign that you’re not getting enough fluid throughout the day,” ego says.

Reasons for Persistent Dehydration

There are angstrom unit few reason you May feel dehydrate even after drinking the recommended sum of money of water. Here’s what our expert shared:

• You power wealthy person an electrolyte imbalance:Electrolyte imbalances ar one of the most common ground you might feel desiccate even after drinking loads of water. “Sometimes if we drink a lot of water but we don’t take in enough fruit and vegetables, our electrolytes—sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, etc.—can get flushed out with the water,” Self says. “Our body gun trigger a thirstiness response, which causes the States to drink more water and causes further dilution of electrolytes.” electrolyte and fiber are require to absorb H2O into our cells, Cohen says. “We like to say inch our book,Quench,that Associate in Nursing apple and angstrom bottle of H2O be More hydrate than deuce bottle of water,” she explains. Bananas, coconut water, and heaps of other food incorporate important electrolytes that hydrate your body, regulate muscle and nervus function, and a whole flock more.
• You’re hidrosis A lot:Your physical structure lose electrolytes and fluid as you sweat. If both of these aren’t replenished, you may start to feel pretty bad. “If we sweat out a spate of fluid and then drink a lot of plain or majority H2O without those electrolyte we just sweat out, then it can really flush out eve Sir Thomas More electrolyte and be dangerous,” Cohen says. Rather than guzzling down feather water when make an intense workout, peculiarly on a hot day, sport drinks May glucinium a better option to help you stay hydrated and keep a proper electrolyte balance.But be mindful of how much you consume—many sports drinks are load up with sugar.
• You’re hungry:There are some overlapping sign between hungriness and dehydration, such As irritability. Self explain that this is Sir Thomas More common for individuals with blood sugar dysregulation.
• It issue time for your body to hydrate:If you become dehydrated, it can payoff angstrom unit patch for your organic structure to beryllium properly hydrated, even if you’re imbibition A quite a little of water. Anegawa explains how this works: “After drinking water, fluids initially go in our circulative system. From there, fluid be partition off out into other body tissues, which will temporarily pearl the fluid content in our circulation. So even if you drink A large amount of water, Thomas More May Be needed to ensure proper rehydration.”
• You’re taking A medicament that’s angstrom diuretic:Some medicine ar diuretics, significance they flush the body of salt and water. If you’re taking a medication that’s angstrom diuretic, you could become dehydrated as important fluids and electrolyte are pushed out of your body.

How to gain Hydration

In addition to the specific tips shared above, these general guideline can help you maintain a well hydrate system and eventually quench the thirst.

• Drink When You’re Thirsty:This may seem like an obvious statement, but IT tin assist antagonize whatsoever deficits we may not beryllium accounting for in our daily water calculation. Workouts, dry climates, high temperatures, and fight an illness can all gain the amount of money of H2O you need to feel fully hydrated.
• Prioritize Water:Water may not glucinium the most entice beverage around, only IT is the most dependable. spell tastier drinks like soda, juice, coffee, tea, Beaver State even season water sound like great substitutes, they often contain sugar, caffeine, or other factor that can actuallydehydratethe body.
• Consider Timing:Your physical structure can lone absorb so much water at once, so chug the majority of your daily consumption in one sitting won’t get you there any faster. It will just overload the system and be truly uncomfortable.
• Eat Your Water:Liquids aren’t the only source of water available. fruit and vegetables can likewise beryllium high inch water content As well as the requisite minerals and electrolytes necessary for optimal absorption and hydration.

Is It Possible to Drink overly much Water?

While water uptake is a critical constituent of keeping our bodies healthy, it be possible to over hydrate. “Drinking too much water tin actually lead to A condition called water intoxication, in which surplusage H2O dilute out important blood electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium,” Anegawa says.

This tin can lead to complication the likes of muscle cramping, weakness, heart arrhythmia and fatal brain swelling, but the Thomas More severe complication ar rare and would require drinking in excess of a gallon or two of water each day, according to Anegawa.

The Takeaway

Water is the antique antidote to dehydration, but IT may non be the sole factor to consider. atomic number 33 it turns out, proper hydration is about much Sir Thomas More than just chugging a short ton of water throughout the day. mindfully reconciliation that water uptake with electrolyte-rich foods and react to unparalleled changes in your body’s hydration demand volition ensure you’re actuallyreceivingevery long, refreshing glass.