Top 10 Early Signs Of Dehydration In Adults

early signs of dehydration

Water accounts for about 75 percent your body weight, and if your body is not provided with enough water, you may not survive for more than several days. Every cell, tissue, and organ in your body can act well thanks to water. Water plays vital roles, for example:

  • It helps in maintaining the fluid balance in your body.
  • It may regulate and maintain the body temperature.
  • It is beneficial in lubricating your eyes and joints.
  • It can protect your spinal cord, tissues, and joints.
  • It aids your body in removing toxins and waste products.
  • It assists digestion.
  • It helps you to control a number of calories.
  • It may keep the skin looking youthful and good.

Your body would not continue functioning properly without water. Therefore, it is very necessary to help your body stay hydrated. To keep it hydrated, you have to drink fluids and consume foods high in water content.

However, your body sometimes can lack more water than usual. This may happen because of the excessive sweating, vigorous physical activity, vomiting, diarrhea, frequent urination, and diabetes.

This water deficiency causes an imbalance of electrolyte in your body, which leads to the dehydration and thereby making your body difficult to function in the best way.

Many people do not pay attention to the deficiency of water in their body. Hence, understanding the symptoms of dehydration can help you notice when you have to boost the water intake. Today, in this writing, will introduce top 10 early signs of dehydration in adults. This article listed the early signs of lacking water in the body from reliable sources. However, it is for the informational purpose. Keep following this writing to know if you are in this condition!

Top 10 Early Signs Of Dehydration In Adults You Should Know

1. Poor Concentration

signs of dehydration - poor concentration

Because the brain of a human is made up of about 90 percentages of water, it definitely shows you the symptoms and signs of dehydration. Deficiency of water in your brain may affect to your memory, mood, and decision making.

Dehydration may even lead to signs of brain fog such as difficulty focusing, forgetfulness, communicating and thinking.

A study claims that deficiency of water is one of the common reasons causing brain fog and various symptoms such as fatigue, lack of sleep, feeling faint for a long time.

In addition, many researchers proven that dehydrated people at the mild level had more difficulties to perform cognitive tasks as well as make decisions at usual.

It is concluded that degraded mood, headache symptoms, and lower concentration are the results of a 1.36 percentage of dehydration in females.

See more: Best ways to improve concentration when studying & working

2. Constipation

signs of dehydration - constipation

Water assists in lubricating your digestive system as well as keeping your digestive tract clean and flexible. This will help you to keep the bowel movements regular and keep constipation at bay.

Therefore, losing fluid too much caused by vomiting or diarrhea can also make the stools harden and cause constipation. Dehydration in your body may even lead to indigestion and heartburn.

A research notes that losing fluid and restricting fluid may increase the risk of constipation. Hence, it is very important to keep your body hydrated to prevent constipation.

Read more: 25 home remedies for constipation in adults and children

3. Reduce Urination

signs of dehydration - reduce urination

You may not believe but if you do not use the restroom for every a few hours, your body may probably lack water. Regularly urinating (4 to 7 times per day) is also a result of drinking a healthy amount of water. Because your body will release toxins via urination, not urinating regularly may be problematic.

Besides, you should pay attention to your urine's color. It is an essential indicator of the hydration level. If your urine is light or clear, it indicates that you have a well-hydrated body. But if it is amber or dark yellow, this will indicate a kind signs of dehydration in your body.

Learn more: 15 Home remedies for frequent urination in women and men

4. Muscle And Joint Pain

signs of dehydration - muscle and joint pain

Water is an important component for owning healthy cartilage and joints. In fact, your joints contain about 80 percentages of water. When the body loses water, your bones will be grinding against each other, which causes pain in your joints. However, if your body is kept hydrated, your joints may deal with sudden movements such as falling and jumping awkwardly or running without causing any pain.

Plus, the decrease of fluids due to perspiration may also make your muscles get contracted, which leads to cramps. A study in 2008 noted that the amount of water in the body is a vital consideration to help you modulate the metabolic and hormonal responses to resistance exercise.

See more: How to relieve arthritis pain naturally at home – 7 tips

5. Accelerated Heartbeat

signs of dehydration - accelerated heartbeat

Another of top 10 early signs of dehydration is to make your heartbeat accelerate. This condition directly impacts on your heart rate along with its performance. Dehydration leads to a decrease in plasma volume, which makes your blood more viscous. This, in turn, affects to your blood circulation as well as increases the heart rate.

Many experts agree that the deficiency of water negatively affects to performance.

Moreover, dehydration also causes electrolyte changes in your body, which leads to the condition of low blood pressure. Besides, because of suffering from stress, your heartbeat becomes faster. This may be frightening and thereby causing panic and anxiety.

In conclusion, if you feel that your heart beats faster, you should sip water slowly to feel better. However, if this problem persists, immediately consult your doctor.

Learn more: The high blood pressure solution review – is it reliable?

6. Scaly, Dry Lips, And Skin

signs of dehydration - scaly, dry lips, and skin

One of the common signs of dehydration is a dry skin lacking elasticity. The skin is the largest organ of your body, and it needs enough water to keep your skin have a good condition.

A low level of water can cause less sweating. It means that your body cannot eliminate excess oil and dirt accumulated on your skin during a day. In addition, because water helps in flushing toxins from your body, dehydration may increase the chance of getting acne, psoriasis, and eczema.

Furthermore, a condition of chapped and dry lips is also another obvious symptom of dehydration.

Therefore, besides using a good moisturizer to moist your skin, you have to drink enough water to make sure that you keep your skin hydrated from the inside out.

See more: How to get rid of dry lips naturally at home: facts and tips

7. Lethargy And Fatigue

signs of dehydration - lethargy and fatigue

If you feel lethargic and fatigued, it can be diagnosed that your body is in the condition of dehydration. Deficiency of water causes the inadequate supply of oxygen throughout your body including your brain and low blood pressure. Lack of oxygen will make you feel sleepy, lethargic, and fatigued.

Additionally, when your body has signs of dehydration, it has to act harder to ensure that you still have a proper blood circulation, which transports nutrients or even breathing. Obviously, expanding extra energy will make you feel tired faster than usual.

Hence, keeping your body hydrated is one of the simplest ways to help you alert and full of energy.

8. Sudden Food Cravings

signs of dehydration - sudden food cravings

If you suddenly have food cravings or hunger pangs, you'd better drink a cup of water before consuming a snack. Your body will send false signals to the brain to note that you are hungry when you are actually thirsty and dehydrated.

In fact, craving a salty dish may be because of the deficiency of water along with electrolytes in your body. You just drink a kind of drinks containing sodium or make homemade lemon water by stirring the juice of a lemon with a cup of water and 1 little salt.

However, some people may experience a craving for a sweet dish. This occurs when the body had difficulty in producing glycogen. In this case, you had better opt for fruits such as watermelon, berries, or papaya, which are sweet and rich in water content.

9. Dry Mouth And Bad Breath

signs of dehydration - dry mouth and bad breath

Bad breath is another of top 10 signs of dehydration that you should notice. Because of lacking water, your body will produce less saliva containing antibacterial properties. This, in turn, aids bacteria in growing more in your mouth, which causes stinky or bad breath.

Besides bad breath, you may suffer from dry mouth. Nevertheless, water acts as a lubricant, keeping your mucus membranes hydrated in your throat and thereby getting rid of dry mouth.

Learn more: 7 Home remedies for bleeding gums and bad breath during pregnancy

10.  Lightheadedness And Headaches

signs of dehydration - lightheadedness and headaches

Both lightheadedness and headaches are the possible signs of dehydration. A drop in the hydration level of your body causes a decrease in the amount of fluid that surrounds your brain, protecting it from being affected by movement and mild bumps.

This leads to migraines as well as nagging headaches. Plus, lacking water decreases the oxygen and blood flow to your brain.

A report in 2010 highlights the possible reasons causing migraines along with various types of headaches, and dehydration is one of these reasons.

When you suffer from a headache, drink a cup of water instead of taking a pill. If this condition is caused by dehydration, it will disappear soon.

Read more: How to treat a headache at home naturally – 6 tips

Tips To Keep Dehydration At Bay

  • Drink enough water and various fluids daily, depending on the amount of factors such as your physical activities, the climate where you live in or your overall health.
  • Begin your day with 1 big glass of water and drink a full cup of water before each of your meals.
  • If you have no time and often do not remember to drink water, let set up a reminder to water for several times per day.
  • Always keep a water bottle beside you whenever you go out.
  • Start including vegetables and fruits rich in water content in your diet.
  • Avoid consuming drinks causing dehydration such as energy drinks, alcohol, and various drinks containing caffeine.
  • When you suffer from vomiting, a fever or diarrhea, you should increase the intake of fluid to get rid of severe dehydration.
  • Immediately see your doctor if you have other symptoms such as dizziness, extreme thirst, a weak or rapid pulse or not urinate for 9 hours.

Recommended link: 10 home remedies for dehydration in adults

If you ask for more about other signs and symptoms of various conditions and diseases, please go to visit our main Health page. After reading this writing about top 10 early signs of dehydration in adults, hope that you could know the early and common signs of dehydration in adults. In addition, the article is just about the informational purpose; then, you should get the best diagnosis from your doctor. If you have any question related to any problem, please leave your comments below, I will respond you soon.  Also, if you know other signs of dehydration in adults, please share them with us.

Want More Content Like This In Your Inbox?

Join The Discussion


Advertising Disclosure
