From how frequently you shower to how regularly you do your groceries, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed our everyday schedules, including how we approach drinking water.
With plans changing so regularly, it's not difficult to neglect routines like keeping a water bottle in your work area that used to be essential for your everyday life.
Our bodies are around 60% water, so it's essential to ensure we're focusing on our water intake, regardless of what's happening around us. Hydration is a vital foundation for ideal well-being and nourishment.
Getting the perfect amount of liquids is critical for controlling internal heat levels, supporting digestion, absorbing nutrients, eliminating waste from the body, protecting tissue and the spinal cord, and keeping organ systems working fit.
How much do you need to drink every day?
To remain hydrated, a healthy individual must drink 25 to 30 milliliters of liquid per kilogram of body weight daily.
Someone weighing 60 kilos should drink at least 1.5 liters (6 cups) of liquid, while someone weighing 80 should drink 2 liters (8 cups).
Yet, that is not all. Your body likewise loses water in specific circumstances—like sweating in hot weather, exercise, a fever, or diarrhea and vomiting—which should be restored.
In case you have a fever (a key symptom related to COVID-19), it is suggested to drink an additional 500 ml (2 cups) of liquid daily. What's more, if you have diarrhea or vomiting, you ought to restore that lost water by drinking more water as the day progresses.
Symptoms of Dehydration
- Dark yellow and strong-smelling urine
- Peeing little and fewer than four times a day
- Dry mouth and skin
- Thirst
- Headache
- Poor concentration
- Feeling tired and dizzy
- Confusion and agitation
Dehydration in COVID Patients
Assessing hydration status is challenging, as hematological and urinary biomarkers don't generally mirror a patient's actual state until severe dehydration grows. Mild dehydration might be missed, misdiagnosed, or misused. The latter is seen in older patients being admitted for social reasons.
Moreover, infection and dehydration regularly exist together at diagnosis, making it hard to build up, which grew first. Various research has shown that COVID-19 patients regularly present with dehydration or 'hypernatremia' (where an individual has an excess of sodium in their blood), here and there, without different indications.
Fluid insufficiency is a typical reason for hypernatremia, and young and old patients are at the highest risk. Hypernatremia has been documented in paediatric4 and more seasoned COVID-19 patients, just as in other age groups. Studies additionally reported that hypernatremia at admission was a prognostic factor for higher morbidity and mortality.
Dehydration can likewise grow later as the development advances. One review point-prevalent study of hypernatremia in 17 ICU patients with SARS-CoV-2-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) detailed that nine individuals became hypernatremic following admission to ICU.
The authors reasoned that since urine osmolarity was within a typical range and patients had no fluid balance, dehydration likely occurred due to insensible liquid loss through skin and breathing. This isn't unexpected in reasonably pyrexic patients.
Well-qualified assessment contrasts, yet some suggest as much as 500ml of extra liquid per one level of fever.
Notwithstanding, it may be contended that patients developed hypernatremia due to impaired kidney function caused by infection. The SARS-CoV-2 virus has been accounted for to be disproportionately influential on kidneys, and unusual sodium reabsorption with expanded urine yield has additionally been described.
However, the authors of the above overview revealed that urine osmolarity was typical, and the sodium admission was similar in different patients, affirming that a liquid deficit caused hypernatremia.
The risk of drinking too much water.
While staying hydrated, be mindful not to try too hard. Drinking extreme amounts of liquid doesn't improve well-being or 'flush out an ailment,' and it tends to be exceptionally risky.
Water intoxication, if untreated, can prompt seizures, loss of consciousness, coma, and even death.
In case you've been drinking a surprisingly large amount of fluid, like a couple of liters of liquid, consistently for quite some time, pay special mind to these signs of overhydration:
- Headache
- Muscle cramps, spasms, and weakness
- Feeling sick and vomiting
- Feeling tired and dizzy
- Confusion and agitation
Some of these signs are the same as those of dehydration. However, the critical distinction is the color and volume of your urine. Drinking a ton of water will cause frequent peeing, and your pee will be exceptionally pale, nearly water-like.
Is rehydration the appropriate response?
Shockingly, one more element of COVID-19 might be hyponatremia, which is low sodium in the blood, contrary to hypernatremia.
A few studies showed that in COVID-19 patients, hyponatremia was more common than hypernatremia at admission and that it was fundamentally more common at admission than in non-COVID-19 patients, giving comparable indications.
Studies assessed that hyponatremia was likewise a risk for disease severity and mortality when contrasted with COVID-19 patients with typical sodium levels. Confronted with a great extent of hyponatremic patients, clinicians might hesitate to give extra liquids to COVID-19 patients.
Nonetheless, one study demonstrated that patients encountered a gradual increase in serum sodium levels after hospital admission and that some hyponatremic patients later turned hypernatremic. Experts also revealed that these patients whose sodium levels expanded after hospital admission were more likely to die.
Curiously, they additionally revealed that hyponatremia was not related to raised mortality except in one group of patients who were likewise hypovolemic, in this way recommending that it isn't the electrolyte imbalance but liquid deficit, which is a danger factor for higher mortality.
COVID-19, like other infectious illnesses affecting the respiratory tract, generally causes dehydration. This is most likely due to reasonable and apathetic liquid losses and the inability of certain patients to restore lost liquids.
A liquid shortage appears to grow gradually in COVID-19 patients and might also be present in people who pay little heed to their electrolyte status. This makes it especially challenging for clinicians to diagnose and manage, but doing so will undoubtedly save lives.
Stay Hydrated During Covid-19
Below are how to best stay away from dehydration during these trying times.
1. Be aware of your needs.
2. Choose food sources that aid you with achieving your fluid intake.
- Zucchini
- Broccoli
- Cucumber
- Tomato
- Spinach
- Brussels Sprouts
- Bell Peppers
- Cauliflower
- Celery
- Green Cabbage
- Oranges
- Strawberry
- Cantaloupe
- Pineapple
- Peaches
- Raspberries
3. Pay attention to your body's signs.
4. Keep it creative.
5. Hydrate even at party time.
While many routines have changed, there are adequate freedoms to refreshingly hydrating for the day. Whether you center around food varieties, refreshments, or both, the many advantages of appropriate hydration make these sound changes beneficial.
Start small, monitor your progress, and appreciate feeling good, looking better, and realizing you're showing extra concern for your hard-working body.
← Older Post Newer Post →