When it comes to overall health, hydration is critical. Water is an essential nutrient to help keep us going throughout life. Our body needs enough water to properly perform its daily functions, stay active, regulate our body temperature, lubricate our joints, and deliver nutrients to cells to name a few. In fact, our water makes up about 60% of our body weight on average. All the more reason why it’s so important!
Drinking enough water helps support the body in being able to perform its daily functions and also helps prevent dehydration, disorientation, exhaustion, and nausea. Some other signs of dehydration include dry mouth, constipation, tiredness, dizziness, dry skin, headache, irritability, sweet cravings, and bad breath to name a few.
Our body loses water naturally from sweating, tears, saliva, and going to the bathroom, and there are plenty of other activities that cause us to lose water naturally. This is why learning how to rehydrate your body (and hydrate fast) is important, especially if there are any signs of dehydration.
Rehydrating quickly can help prevent damage to the body from fluid loss, and so today, I’m sharing practical ways to quickly hydrate the body.
How to Quickly Hydrate
Drink water
If you’re concerned about dehydration and wanting to stay hydrated, it should come as no surprise that in order to rehydrate quickly, one of the first things you should do is drink a glass of water. According to the Institute of Medicine (IOM), the amount of water that’s recommended for the average adult to drink per day is a total of 13 cups (about 3 liters) of fluid each day for men and 9 cups (a little over 2 liters) of fluid each day for women.
However, studies revealed that only about 13% of U.S. adults drink more than 8 glasses of water per day, and close to half consume less than the daily recommended amount. This goes to show that many people could be walking around experiencing signs of dehydration without even properly recognizing that’s what’s going on. Let this also serve as a reminder to drink enough water to bump up your fluid intake, rehydrate your body throughout the day and help improve your overall health.
There are a lot of ways to drink more water! Drink more water so you won’t lose fluids.
Drink sports drinks
If you’re not a big fan of plain water, you can sip electrolytes-rich drinks like sports drinks (or electrolyte water). Sports drinks like Gatorade and Powerade have a high water content and can help you balance your fluids and electrolytes levels, which help you rehydrate your body fast. Just watch out for the added sugars.
Electrolyte water is commonly used to help with rehydration during physical activities, aid in muscle contraction, and improve exercise performance… but they’re also a good beverage to drink when you’re sick and need to stay hydrated too! You can also find electrolyte powders available that can be mixed into your plain water if you’re wanting to go that route as well and drink water with flavorings and added nutrients.
Try coconut water
Coconut water is another great hydrating beverage option. Coconut water has a high water content and is low in sugar and high in nutrients that help lower blood sugar, prevent kidney stones, and support your overall heart health.
Drink skim milk
Did you know? Skim milk’s high water content and protein make it an effective and great recovery drink option for dehydration. In fact, the reduced fat, sugar, and protein content actually makes it slightly better and more hydrating than regular full-fat milk and even water. A study from Scotland’s St. Andrews University suggests that milk is better at rehydrating than water or electrolyte- or glucose-containing drinks due to the fact that beverages containing a little bit of sugar, fat or protein do an even better job of keeping us hydrated for longer.
If you have a dairy allergy, you might try soy milk as a great hydrating alternative to skim milk.
Smoothies
While we’re on the subject of how low sugar, fat, and protein-enriched beverages help us stay hydrated longer, this makes smoothies the perfect solution for rehydration. Add water, milk, and fruits and vegetables that have a high water content and you’ve got yourself the perfect beverage to quince your thirst and help you stay hydrated.
Pedialyte
Pedialyte is an over the counter rehydration solution that’s commonly recommended for children, however it’s a great option for adults as well. It’s great for helping you feel hydrated fast. That’s probably why doctors recommend it so much for kids!
Fruits and vegetables
A natural way to consume more water is by having a diet that’s filled with water enriched foods. There are a lot of fruits and vegetables which have a high water content and offer refreshing ways for you to rehydrate. Such fruits and vegetables include:
- Strawberries
- Watermelon
- Honey dew melon
- Oranges
- Pineapple
- Cucumbers
- Kale
- Lettuce
- Broccoli
- Carrots
So find ways to snack on fruits that have a high water content or eat more salads with water-containing vegetables in your diet.
Coffee and tea
Although considered to be a diuretic, drinking moderate amounts of coffee and tea is another way to stay hydrated. Coffee and tea are beverages that have a high water content and offer hydration. Just be mindful that too much can have the opposite effect. According to reports, caffeine becomes dehydrating in doses around 250–300 mg, the equivalent of two to three 8-ounce (240-ml) cups of coffee, or five to eight 8-ounce (240-ml) cups of tea.
Use an oral rehydration solutions (ORS)
Oral rehydration solutions are a type of fluid replacement used to treat moderate signs of dehydration and normalize electrolyte levels. It’s packed with electrolytes to help balance fluid levels if there has been fluid loss due to diarrhea, vomiting, or for some other reason.
Oral rehydration solutions can be made at home using 1 liter (about 32 ounces) of clean water, 6 teaspoons of added sugars, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. It’s generally safe for children, however if you have any questions or concerns, definitely consult with a medical professional before trying this method.
IV fluids
If you are experiencing severe dehydration and fluid loss, you may be in need of IV fluids to quickly rehydrate and avoid further damage. To get IV fluids, there are at home options or for a professional administration, you should make this request to your healthcare provider who can then make the decision and determine if that’s something that needs to be administered or if you in fact are in need of other treatments.
Staying hydrated is essential and there are a lot of ways you can do just that. The most simple: simply drink enough water and you won’t have to worry so much about all the extras.
