Strong heat, the sun shines and shines. On TV, on the radio, every moment we hear how to defend ourselves from the sun. Watch out for sunburn, watch out for dehydration and so on … We all know it …
I offer you a little trick to cool down:
But much more important is a sufficient supply of fluids. Without water, the body would not listen to us. How could it, when it doesn’t have its “petrol”. What all water supplies and why we need it, read in today’s article.
We should keep our body’s internal environment in order – by consuming enough fluids, which is at least three to three and a half litres a day during the hot summer. Water is the most important component of the human food chain. Its deficiency leads to serious damage to the human body after just a few days. If fluid losses significantly exceed fluid intake, various complications can arise: circulatory disturbances, muscle cramps, headaches, shivering, nausea, collapse and even heat shock. Therefore, a proper drinking regime is a very important condition for maintaining optimal health of every person.
WHY IS WATER SO IMPORTANT FOR OUR BODY?
Two thirds of our body is water. It is estimated that a person who weighs 70 kg has 50 litres of it in him. Only a small proportion is found in body fluids, e.g. blood, lymph, stomach or intestinal contents – about 15 litres. The other roughly 30 litres of water is contained by the tissues of the organs inside their cells.
The body needs to take in approximately 1.5 to 2.5 litres of water per day by drinking. In addition, the body produces water itself when it burns nutrients – through metabolic pathways. Water absorption occurs osmotically in the small intestine and partly in the large intestine. Unconsumed, utilized water is excreted from the body through the digestive tract by saliva, gastric juice, bile, pancreatic juice and intestinal secretions and faeces. However, the main expenditure of water is mainly through urination, the escape of water vapour during respiration and, of course, perspiration.
Water in our body significantly influences metabolism at all levels. It is a carrier of minerals, trace elements and other elements. Every chemical reaction in our body takes place in an aqueous environment. Water transports nutrients to all organs, supplies the nerve pathways, maintains the proper functioning and reproductive capacity of our cells, is necessary for all the tasks of our blood and lymph, and regulates our body temperature. In addition, water helps to flush out the constantly attacking poisons in our body through the kidneys, intestines and skin.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR A PERSON TO DRINK PROPERLY?
Drinking patterns, i.e. water intake and output, are governed by a person’s constitution, age, body activity and also the environment. Work and exercise in the heat lead to large losses of fluids and minerals through sweating. Then we lose several litres of water per hour and therefore we have to replenish the body immediately with the corresponding amount of fluids and ions. The lack of water induces a feeling of thirst, which is mediated reflexively from the so-called thirst centre in the cerebral pendant, in response to changes in the chemical and physical parameters of body fluids, especially blood and cerebrospinal fluid, where the density of these fluids is increased. Lack of water is manifested by dryness of mucous membranes, fatigue, malaise, drowsiness, impaired coordination of gait and movements, decreased skin tension, acceleration of pulse, decrease in blood pressure. In children we can often observe headaches caused by lack of fluids. In the intestines, water aids the absorption and digestion of nutrients and constipation occurs when there is a lack of water, especially if it is also associated with a lack of fibre. The kidneys are the main organs responsible for maintaining water and mineral balance. This is where fluids flow and the concentration of excreted water is concentrated. The kidneys try to save as much water as possible for the body when there is a lack of fluids, but in doing so they also retain substances in the body that are harmful to the body – toxic substances. The water balance is controlled by the hormone of the appendage (adiuretic hormone), then adrenal cortex aldosterone, adrenal medulla hormones and thyroid hormones.
The increased fluid consumption during exercise results from the fact that most of the energy (up to 75%) is converted to heat and body temperature is lowered by sweating. Fluid consumption is proportional to the outside temperature, the magnitude of the load and the altitude. In cool dry air, we sweat less but lose more water through respiration. Fluid loss by respiration increases with altitude and can be as much as 0.5 to 1.5 litres per hour. This is often underestimated and the feeling of thirst is suppressed. If the loss of fluids and minerals is not compensated for, excessive fluid loss occurs in the body, called dehydration. A fluid loss of 2% reduces performance by up to 20% (1.6 litres in an 80 kg person). A fluid loss of more than 6% can already lead to collapse, which can be fatal.
WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DRINK TOO LITTLE?
When there is a lack of water in our body, harmful substances accumulate in the blood vessels and tissues, overloading the metabolism and excretory organs. The water in the tissues, blood and lymph thicken, the body’s defence system weakens, the transmission of nerve impulses fails, cell renewal slows down and the person ages faster. Lack of water thickens the blood, thus reducing the pressure (it can lead to collapse) and also the oxygen supply to all tissues. Thickened blood puts more strain on the heart, the flow through the fallopian tubes is reduced. Water is important as a major component in the excretion by the kidneys of pollutants produced by metabolic processes. Water is the most important component for thermoregulatory processes and protects the body from overheating.
Water provides both food and waste disposal. If we forget to drink, the body is forced to work in emergency mode. The first organs to suffer are those responsible for separating and eliminating waste from the blood – the liver and kidneys. These two organs are very closely linked. If the body is unable to excrete toxins for a long time, it starts to store them. One such dump of toxins in the body is human fat. It is the most contaminated (polluted) fat in the animal kingdom. It is rivaled perhaps only by human-bred animals. Thirst alerts us to water deficiency. If the body reports feeling thirsty, it is already a wake-up call. As we grow older, this sensation becomes weaker and weaker; old people hardly know it at all. We should check our water intake continuously throughout the day. The more the blood thickens, the harder it is for our kidneys to cope with waste products. Salts are deposited in their tubules until kidney stones are formed. If someone experiences renal colic, i.e. the loosening of such a stone, he takes very good care to follow a drinking regime.
WHEN AND HOW MUCH SHOULD WE DRINK?
A drink first thing in the morning is very useful. We find that we feel better because the intestines are cleansed, the body is adequately hydrated, the kidneys are gradually flushed out and the circulation improves.
We don’t know why we have actually learned to wash down our food. However, drinking large amounts of liquids during a meal brings several problems – it dilutes digestive juices and enzymes, flushes some of the food from the stomach into the intestine before it has been sufficiently digested, brings air into the stomach which causes eructations – burping. All this results not only in indigestion, but also in impaired use of energy. Therefore, it is best to take liquids about half an hour after eating, and no later than half an hour before eating.
The choice of drink is important, it should not irritate the stomach and should be well absorbed. The recommended daily fluid consumption is 30-35 ml per kg of body weight under normal load. Thirst is not a good indicator of when to drink. When we already feel thirsty, it is too late. By then we have already lost more than 2% of our fluid. It is better to drink more often in small doses than once and a lot, which could cause stomach problems.
WHAT DO WE QUENCH OUR THIRST WITH?
The beverages we consume should have certain characteristics. Especially in summer, they must not be too cold. Chilled to ice-cold liquids behave like water on a hot plate in the body – they sizzle and evaporate. Moist drinks pass through the body gradually and therefore refresh it much more. In addition, iced drinks impair digestion and can also cause inflammation of the stomach lining.
We often reach for chemically processed liquids such as coffee, tea, lemonade, cola and alcoholic beverages. Of course, all of these listed beverages also contain water. But at the same time they have a lot of harmful chemicals, colouring and preservatives, artificial flavours, sweeteners and so on. In order for our body to eliminate these substances, it needs water. Often much more water than is contained in the aforementioned beverages.
Alcoholic and caffeinated drinks and strong black teas have a diuretic effect and these drinks dehydrate the body. Moreover, even to remove waste products like caffeine and alcohol, the body needs a lot of water. This is why we are often thirsty, despite having drunk, for example, litres of beer a few hours before. Also headaches, heaviness and all the symptoms of a “hangover” are the result of acute dehydration and over-saturation of the body. We also notice that in some cafés we automatically get a pint of water or mineral water with the coffee we order. Thus, with all these ‘modern’ drinks, it is necessary to drink the same amount of water.
Drinks must also not be too sweetened and thick. A litre of cola contains an amount of sugar equal to 24 cubes! Over-sweetened lemonades with more than 2.5% sugar may taste good, but they are too heavy on the stomach and the desired refreshment will not be obtained. Sugar slows down the absorption of water and deprives the body of fluid for its processing. If you can’t resist them, dilute them at least two to three times.
Choose juices that are sweetened and flavoured as little as possible, as these usually contain various organic acids, such as citric acid and preservatives. We prefer apple, orange, currant, grape, pineapple and tomato juices as they contain plenty of magnesium, iron and potassium.
Beer contains substances that stimulate gastric juices, aid digestion, provide the body with B vitamins and magnesium, but is unsuitable for everyday drinking due to its alcohol content.
Milk is not a beverage. It is a food that requires complex digestion. Milk drunk is first curdled into curd so that the milk proteins can be digested. It is these proteins and fats contained in milk that slow down the emptying of the stomach, thus retaining fluid in it. Thus, milk is not an anti-thirst medicine; it should not be used as a drink, but as a food.
Mineral waters have their pros and cons. They contain minerals that the body needs every step of the way. However, it is not advisable to drink medicinal mineral waters or waters with a high sodium content as a regular drink. A distinction should be made between waters for healing and waters for everyday drinking. It is advisable to drink mineral waters with a low concentration of minerals, so that their composition is close to the values of body fluids and minerals in the blood. Ordinary spring water, poor in minerals, is recommended for everyday drinking. Many sources claim that our body cannot optimally use the minerals contained in mineral water. Only the organically embedded minerals in fruits and vegetables can be well used by the body. The inorganic mineral building blocks that are in mineral waters often stick together with other substances, such as animal fat, and accumulate on the walls of blood vessels or in joints. Very carbonated drinks are also not suitable because they irritate the stomach, overload the body and the bubbles put pressure on the diaphragm. Mineral waters should therefore be alternated and combined with water, herbal and fruit teas or fresh juices.
We say to ourselves that the most suitable water is clean water. The question is what kind of water we should drink. Rural wells contain a lot of nitrates from the fields, the water from our taps is usually surface water, treated river water and groundwater. However, this water does not exactly meet the concept of ‘clean’. It is a mixture of dissolved minerals, various chemicals, among others, chlorine, which is used to purify the water. It would therefore be best to filter tap water using a special filter, but this is not yet possible in every household. It is therefore a good idea to rotate drinks frequently, not only drinking water but also other suitable and healthy beverages.
Unsweetened herbal or fruit teas are excellent for daily fluid replenishment. Fresh fruit and vegetable juices are again a hearty biobomb, strengthening our organism. They contain vitamins, minerals, effective phyto-nutrients, taste delicious and are refreshing. Furthermore, bubble-free, neutral mineral drinks and diluted ionic and vitamin drinks are suitable. Suitable beverages are also complemented by a suitable diet. When it is very hot, it is a good idea to consume vegetable and fruit salads in particular, which also provide us with a supply of fluids. Fruits and fruiting vegetables, especially melons, peaches, tomatoes and cucumbers, have a high water content.
A simple indicator of whether we are following a good drinking regime is morning urine. It should be light and in sufficient quantity. We should urinate at least 1 litre daily.
Let’s get into the habit of taking plenty of the right fluid at the right time! Let’s try a sort of back-check of our drinking regime at home. Prepare ‘our daily dose’ (e.g. 2 litres) in a larger container first thing in the morning and try to drink this amount by the evening. We must remember that any loss of water, if not compensated by drinking, reduces performance and well-being, so sufficient attention must be paid to replacing it.
(Source: PharmDr. Monika Hollósy )
