Drink up! Water is Key to Good Health

Water may not pack a whole lot of taste, but it sure packs a lot of value when it comes to your health. Our bodies depend on water. A person may be able to last weeks without eating, but only a matter of days without water.

Drinking water is about much more than just quenching thirst. Most of the major systems in your body depend on water. To work the way it should, your body must remain well hydrated. However, the human body is constantly losing water through bodily functions and does not produce water on its own. That’s why it’s so important to keep your body well hydrated by drinking plenty of water and consuming other fluids and/or foods containing water.

Water helps regulate body temperature, aids in digestion, enables your body to flush out waste, and can reduce constipation. Water carries nutrients to body cells and keeps tissues moist, including your eyes, nose, mouth, and skin. When a body does not get enough water, it becomes dehydrated and dehydration can cause a variety of health issues and even lead to serious complications.

A person can become dehydrated at any age, but dehydration is especially problematic when we are in our later years.  Seniors are far more likely to fall victim to dehydration as a result of changes in the body related to the aging process.

Awareness of the sensation of thirst becomes less obvious with age, which can greatly reduce the desire to drink. Our bodies also contain less water in later years and that means we can become dehydrated faster than when we were younger.

Many older people take various medications, and some of these medications may affect the amount of water we should be drinking. Speak with your doctor about fluid intake and how much water you should be drinking each day. The amount of water an individual needs may depend on other factors as well, such as body size and metabolism.