How To Drink Water In The Heat?

Summer heat is a challenge for many people, especially for people with chronic diseases. Lack of water in the body affects our daily well-being and overall health. Dehydration can manifest itself in headaches, muscle cramps, fatigue and lethargy, loss of performance and irritability. Dehydration causes the blood to thicken, increasing the load on blood vessels and the likelihood of blood clots.

In the heat, cases of heart failure, heart attack, and stroke are very common.

How much water is needed daily

The daily water requirement will be completely different for each person. You can calculate it using a simple formula by multiplying your body weight by 0.04 (40 ml of water per 1 kg of weight). This is the amount of fluid that should be ingested daily. In summer, this rate may increase, as we lose some moisture in the form of sweat. Staying in the sun for a long time, or doing heavy physical work in high temperature conditions, it is simply necessary to replenish the water deficit in the body.

When to drink water

Most of your fluids should be consumed during the coldest times of the day (evening, night, and morning). This way your body can store moisture in the tissues. From 8 to 12 hours and from 16 to 20 hours, you need to drink in small portions of 1-2 sips when you really want to, but not more often than once every half hour. From 12 to 16, it is advisable to consume as little liquid as possible.

What kind of water to drink

• Salted water. More than 60% of our body is water. Or rather, saline. This solution is a reaction medium where all the biochemical processes that keep us alive take place.In the heat, our body tries to maintain a normal body temperature by evaporating sweat from the surface of the skin, which cools our body. At the same time, the body tries to stabilize the water-salt balance.

  In addition, when we sweat, important salts are also lost from our body. The body is able to regulate the loss of sodium and chlorine, but not potassium. Significant potassium loss causes cardiovascular problems, seizures, and fainting.

  Therefore, many doctors recommend drinking salted water in the heat. It is better to take sea salt: it contains more essential elements. Add no more than ¼ tsp of salt to 1 liter of water.

  Remember: the water should not be salty, but only slightly salted.

   

• Mineral water is also a great way to replenish the loss of important salts. Choose water that contains sodium, chlorine, potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulfate, etc. ions. With a degree of mineralization of no more than 2.5-3%.
• Water with lemon. In hot weather, when the body loses moisture, our blood thickens, and there is a risk of blood clots. Water acidified with lemon juice can help thin the blood and prevent blood clots.

What should be the water temperature

Although in the summer heat you want to quench your thirst with cool water, it is not recommended. At this time, our blood vessels are dilated. When we drink cold water, a sharp temperature drop occurs and vasospasm can occur.

This can lead to a stroke or angina attack. Drink water at room temperature.