So Spring is here and Summer is on the way. Temperatures are rising and so this is a good time to discuss dehydration prevention.

Every Summer I have a number of patient visits resulting from dehydration. A lot of you know the basics such as drinking water, taking sea salt and/or potassium and cell salts. Yet some of you still suffer from dehydration.

Symptoms include:

• increased thirst
• dry mouth and swollen tongue
• weakness
• dizziness
• palpitations (feeling that the heart is jumping or pounding)confusion
• sluggishness, even fainting
• inability to sweat
• decreased urine output: urine color may indicate dehydration. If urine is concentrated and deeply yellow or amber, you may be dehydrated.
• headaches, even migraines
• low blood pressure
• nausea

still dehydrated?

So what happens if you are drinking water, taking salt and potassium and cell salts and still feel dehydrated, thirsty, or experience the above symptoms?

Well, here’s another factor to take into account: the incorrect pH balance in your body could result in a situation where your body is not absorbing water but simply passing it through. Think of a dry sponge and a running faucet. If the sponge is bone dry the water simply drops straight through without the sponge absorbing any water. This can happen to your body when it has the incorrect pH balance – too acid or too alkaline. One way to tell if this is happening is if you urinate too frequently.

This can occur due to poor water quality, incorrect diet or other factors. So if you suspect you are dehydrated you can come and get nutritional testing to find how to correct the pH balance in your body.

drinking water

Drink at least 8 glasses (about 4 pints) of water daily. If you are active, increase this by another 2-4 glasses (1-2 pints). If you want to add electrolytes to your water, or buy water with electrolytes, inspect the ingredients and try to avoid those with sugar, glucose or aspartame.