Feeling thirsty? You are more thirsty than you think

Thirst has always been our daily need and it is probably the time when we think about getting something cold and refreshing to drink. But what we don't realize is the fact that our body fluid levels play a very important role in our health.

Your doctor may probably have told you to stay hydrated but you probably didn't know what he was talking about. Sure staying hydrated means drinking a lot of water but that isn't totally true.

When you feel thirst it means that your body was probably thirsty thirty minutes ago because the receptors responsible for thirst gains it stimuli from blood which take a around 30 minutes to be called dehydrated. What being hydrated on the other hand means keeping the levels of fluids in your body at a certain concentration. You probably don't feel the extreme adverse effects of thirst because your body has an exceptional level of maintaining a constant environment in your body. More specifically it is called Homeostasis or osmoregulation.

So can being dehydrated really cause you problems? Yes. Being dehydrated is one of the main causes for those headaches you get during the middle of the day. Your body loses a lot of water when you urinate, defecate, sweat and when you breathe in and out. All this water leaves your body and it is more than you think.

So why is it so important to stay hydrated? Why is it that doctors and health specialists always advise us to always remain hydrated?

Water is what constitutes around 60% of your body weight. Water is the main constituent in blood and it is needed to transport all the waste material out of your body such as Urea and Carbon dioxide. Water is what maintains blood volume and if not maintained at a certain level will cause low blood pressure. You kidneys need to lose water to lose the harmful substances in your body. When your water levels go low your urine becomes more dark as your kidneys are conserving more water and making your urine more concentrated, you mouth becomes dry, you eyes appear to be sunken, your skin becomes firm and dry, you feel tired and groggy and you get these severe headaches all of which are the signs and symptoms of dehydration. Seems like a turn for the worst huh?

So what happens when you are actually hydrated? When you body is hydrated your body performs at its best. The rate of removal of waste from urine is instantaneous as blood is being filtered by your kidneys right now. You skin will have that natural glow and texture, you will feel very active and ready to do anything and all your organs and cells are functioning well.

So you see that is is really important to stay hydrated. Educate your family and friends and share this knowledge and don't forget to drink that fresh thirst quenching glass of water!