The human body can survive for weeks without food but only a few days without water. Dehydration is not only something that can happen when you are stuck on a desert island without any fresh water to drink; it can happen at any time, and you may even be dehydrated most of the time without realising it.
Various studies have shown that most individuals walk around dehydrated about 40% of the time without knowing it, especially children or the elderly, who do not feel the effects of thirst so easily and can easily get dehydrated without realising it – all it takes to become dehydrated is between 2% and 5 % water loss.
How Do I Know If I Am Dehydrated?
There are two kinds of dehydration; acute dehydration and chronic dehydration. Acute dehydration is when dehydration is experienced in a short period of time and is caused by overexertion and quick depletion of fluids from the body. Chronic dehydration is when the body is constantly losing water that is not replaced on a regular basis.
While most of us just think that a dry mouth means that we need to drink something, it may be one of the first signs of dehydration, as can fatigue, muscle cramps, or even a headache. While you may think that these mean that you are coming down with something, as most of us do, they are all tell-tale signs of dehydration.
Here are two quick methods of testing for dehydration:
Skin Test – A very quick and easy method of checking to see whether you are dehydrated or not is to pinch a roll of skin on the back part of your hand. Pull the skin between your wrist and your fingers up about half a centimetre and let go. It should spring back to its original position quickly; if it does not you may be dehydrated.
Toilet Test: Check the colour of your urine the next time you go to the toilet or if you think you may be dehydrated. If it is more or less transparent then you are fine; the darker your urine is the more dehydrated you are.
The best is to ensure that you don’t get dehydrated however, and this can easily be achieved by ensuring that you drink water throughout the day; drink more if it is hot or if you are exercising or doing physical work.
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