OMG Digital Magazine OMG Issue 311 31st May 2018 | Page 30

OMG Digital Magazine | 311 | Thursday 31 May 2018 • PAGE 30
Health
The Importance of Hydration
BY VICTORIA WEINBLAT.
Proper hydration is important for overall health.
Without proper hydration, you become dehydrated,
which means your body does not have enough water
to function normally. You lose water every day when
you breathe, sweat and go to the bathroom. The water
content in the foods you eat and the beverages you
drink combine to hydrate your body.
Athletic Performance
Hydration is essential to peak athletic performance.
When you do not consume enough liquid or fresh fruits
and vegetables to stay properly hydrated, you end up
thirsty and light headed. Insufficient hydration fatigues
your muscles, reduces your coordination and causes
muscle cramps. While working out or playing sports,
dehydration compromises the body’s ability to cool
itself through sweating. This leads to heat exhaustion
and in extreme cases a potentially life-threatening
condition called heat stroke.
Weight Loss
Consume part of the water required for proper daily
hydration before your meals to control your appetite
according to a study by researchers from Virginia
Tech and reported at the 2010 National Meeting of
the American Chemical Society. Drinking 16 oz. of
water before meals three times a day over a 12-week
period increased average weight loss by about 5 lbs.,
compared with those who did not increase water
intake. Researchers could not definitively say what
caused the additional weight loss but speculate it fills
up the stomach making you feel fuller.
Pregnant Women and New Mothers
Sufficient hydration is important to a health pregnancy.
Staying properly hydrated assists with the liver and
kidney function for the mother and the fetus. During
her pregnancy it helps the mother combat constipation
and increases her blood volume as her body expands
and the fetus grows. A new mother needs proper
hydration to produce a sufficient amount of breast milk
for her baby. Dehydration can cause preterm labor and
miscarriage.
Considerations
Certain health conditions increase the amount of water
required to stay properly hydrated. If you have kidney
stones, a bladder infection, have been vomiting or have
diarrhea, your health professional may recommend
increasing your water consumption. Fitness enthusiasts
exercising inside or outside, especially during hot
weather, require more water to stay properly hydrated.
Looking at the color of your urine is one way to know
how hydrated you are. Light yellow or colorless urine
typically indicates proper hydration, but dark yellow
urine is a common indicator of dehydration.