Water is an essential component of our day-to-day lives and has a wide variety of functions within the human body. It is so essential that it is impossible for a human to go longer than seven days without drinking water. Many of us fail to recognize the significance of keeping our bodies hydrated on a daily basis and fail to fully appreciate the benefits that water provides for our bodies.
Keeping yourself hydrated with water throughout strenuous exercise is absolutely necessary. Water is essential for preventing dehydration and ensuring that the body contains the appropriate amount of fluid at all times.
As you sweat during your workout, water will help keep you from overheating. When you perspire, the extra heat from your body is lost to the atmosphere through the process of evaporation. This keeps the temperature of your body where it should be, which is optimal. Additionally, drinking water before, during, and after exercise helps your muscles recover more quickly and reduces the rate at which they become fatigued. Your muscles produce lactic acid as you exercise, which is what causes them to become sore. Maintaining a healthy level of hydration helps your body get rid of the lactic acid that builds up in your muscles at a faster rate.
The degree to which you are hydrated has a direct bearing on the amount of mental energy that you have available. Your brain cells are just like the rest of the cells in your body in that they require water to function properly. For optimal mental function, the brain needs a steady supply of oxygen and nutrients, which water helps to deliver. Dehydration of any severity can have a significant impact on a person’s mental energy levels. Memory loss and impaired cognitive function are two symptoms that can result from not drinking enough water.
Dehydration is one of the most common factors that can bring on headaches. The brain undergoes a momentary shrinkage due to the loss of fluid when a person is dehydrated. A headache is the result of the brain pulling away from the lining of the skull as a result of this condition. Next time you have a headache, give some thought to the possibility that you are simply dehydrated and that’s all it is.
When the stools in your colon do not receive an adequate amount of water, you may experience constipation. When you are dehydrated, water that would normally go to your large intestine will instead be used to rehydrate the rest of your body. If you drink less water, you may notice that your stools become dry, inflexible, and more difficult to move through your bowels. For the sake of your digestive health, be sure to drink plenty of water.
Stones in the kidney are solid deposits of salt and minerals that can form anywhere in the urinary tract or in the kidneys themselves. To prevent the formation of these stones, your system needs a sufficient amount of fluids so that the mineral concentration can be diluted. The color of your urine can be used as a useful indicator of how well hydrated you are. If you are dehydrated, your urine may have a darker color than normal. If your urine is a light yellow or clear color, this indicates that your body is receiving the proper amount of fluids.
HACEY is aware of the many positive effects that water can have on people, which is why, as part of our clean water project, we work to support local communities and schools by supplying them with clean water source. Visit hacey.org for further information.
Written By:
Michael Adegboye
