The Dangers of Dehydration

Have you ever tried to drink, everyday, at least half as many ounces of water as you weigh in pounds? I really work at drinking at least 96 oz. (about 3 liters) of water each day, in addition to my morning and afternoon tea (No, I don’t weigh 192 pounds!). I carry water with me all the time. Last year at Christmas, I even asked for--and got--an insulated carrier for a quart bottle, and it goes with me whenever I leave the house.

So, imagine my surprise when I found myself crumpling to the floor at our local K-Mart—the apparent victim of dehydration. Concerned faces hovered over me. I heard a manager ask a clerk to get me some water (I had my bottle with me). Store personnel called the paramedics. I had abdominal discomfort, could I be the victim of a heart attack (that is the most likely symptom for a woman)? I was too faint to drive myself home, so I ended up in the back of the ambulance. An EMT started an IV, and began pushing fluid into my vein. My blood pressure was too low for the EMT to be comfortable. At the hospital, everything checked out. After 4 hours and 2 liters of IV fluid, they let me go home. They seemed convinced I had become dehydrated and the fluids corrected that.

I believe I was the victim of food poisoning. But this episode got me to thinking about how important drinking water is. Could not drinking enough water cause my blood pressure to be that low? Experts say it could. In fact, dehydration is a leading cause of fainting, lightheadedness, drowsiness, confusion, and fatigue.

For instance, if you are feeling tired--or like you aren’t thinking clearly--try having a glass of water. Often, clarity will return almost immediately, and that problem that looked insurmountable will seem to solve itself. Many gerontologists recommend that their older patients increase their intake of water to help counteract minor confusion.

Let’s do an experiment. Try drinking the recommended amount of water everyday; then, tell me how you feel. Here’s the formula for figuring out how much you should drink:

Weight in pounds/2 = minimum number of ounces of WATER to drink

Remember, if you live where it is hot and dry (i.e. desert), or you work hard physically (i.e. construction worker) or exercise avidly, you will need to drink more than this. It’s hot in Hawaii, so I drink far more than my weight divided by 2.

I’m looking forward to hearing your results. I’ll share mine, as well.