Dehydration and high blood pressure are common health problems. They can both harm your body in different ways. Hence, it’s crucial to understand their link and how they work together. In this article, we’ll examine the tie between dehydration and blood pressure. We’ll study the evidence behind their connection and offer useful tips for good hydration and blood pressure levels.
We’re going to talk about what dehydration is, the basics of high blood pressure, and how these two relate. We’ll also look at how medicine can cause dehydration, how much water you should drink daily, and how lifestyle choices impact hydration and blood pressure. Finally, we’ll cover when to see a doctor and answer common questions about the topic.
So what exactly is dehydration? Is it just a dry mouth now and then, or is it more serious?
Dehydration happens when your body loses more fluids than it gets. This leads to a lack of water and electrolytesneeded for normal body functions. If you don’t replace the lost fluids, your body starts to dehydrate. This condition can be very harmful, especially for young children and older adults who are more at risk.
Multiple factors can lead to dehydration:
Knowing the signs of dehydration is key. The early warning signs might vary depending on your age. Common signs in adults include:
The symptoms of dehydration in infants and young kids can comprise:
To keep yourself from getting dehydrated, drink plenty of fluids and eat fruits and vegetables that have a lot of water. It’s important to drink more water particularly when it’s hot, if you do a tough workout or if you’re not feeling well. Pay attention to your body and ensure you drink enough fluids.
Staying hydrated is very critical as dehydration can reduce the blood volume and consequently your blood pressure may fall too low and when left untreated low blood pressure can damage the heart or brain.
Dr. Ashish Bajaj, M.B.B.S., M.D. in Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology
Did you know?
Blood pressure is the force your blood puts on the walls of your arteries and veins. Let’s dig into the basics of high blood pressure or hypertension.
High blood pressure, which goes by the name hypertension, is when the force of your blood pushing against your blood vessel walls is higher than the normal range 120/80 mm HgIt affects about one in three American adults.
Many things can lead to high blood pressure:
Often, you can’t tell if you have high blood pressure. But if it’s not treated, it can cause serious problems like stroke, heart attack, kidney damage, and loss of sight.
To keep from having high blood pressure, try to make healthy lifestyle choices like:
In my experience I have found that dehydration is always accompanied by loss of fluid from blood vessels which leads to a low volume state called hypovolemic shock and is always accompanied by low blood pressure.
Dr. M.G. Kartheeka, MBBS, MD(Pediatrics)
Let’s look at how dehydration might change blood pressure. It can lead to both low and high blood pressure.
Dehydration can change blood pressure in various ways:
If dehydration causes a large drop in your blood volume, you can get a type of low blood pressure called hypotension. With less blood volume, your blood can’t reach all your body tissue the way it should. Very severe dehydration can lead to a very dangerous condition called hypovolemic shock.
Dehydration can also cause high blood pressure, known as hypertension. Your body lets out vasopressin when you’re dehydrated, which tells your kidneys to keep more water and makes your blood vessels tighten. Both of these can raise your blood pressure.
Hydration plays a key part in controlling blood pressure. You need plenty of fluids to keep your blood volume right and make sure your organs and tissues work properly. Staying well-hydrated can help avoid both low and high blood pressure and improve your overall health.
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While medicines and drugs play an important role in handling high blood pressure, some medicines can cause dehydration.
Some medicines, including diuretics and certain other high blood pressure medications, can cause you to pee more, leading to dehydration.
Some blood pressure drugs, like angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs), may cause dehydration as a side effect. If you take these drugs, you must drink enough fluid to keep yourself well-hydrated and control your blood pressure.
If you take drugs that might cause dehydration, talk with your healthcare provider about how much fluid you should drink each day to stay well hydrated. They might suggest that you drink more fluids or perhaps alter your drug routine if needed.
Keeping hydrated is key to all-around health and managing blood pressure. Do you know how much water you should drink each day?
Every adult woman should drink 91 ounces (or 2.7 litres) of water daily and every adult man 125 ounces (or 3.7 litres), says the National Academy of Sciences. This includes both drinks and water-rich foods. That said, a person’s water needs may change based on things like their age, sex, weight, overall health, how much they exercise and the drugs they take.
Your water needs depend on many things, including:
Besides plain water, you can get your daily fluid intake from other drinks and foods:
You should control or avoid certain drinks to manage high blood pressure or dehydration, such as:
Your diet, how much you exercise and other lifestyle choices can affect your high blood pressure and hydration levels.
Eating well and doing regular exercise can help you both stay hydrated and manage your blood pressure. Go for food and drinks rich in water to keep your fluids up and eat a balanced diet to manage your overall health and blood pressure.
Try to eat food and drinks rich in water, like:
Avoid foods high in sodium and bad fats, which can raise your blood pressure.
Doing regular physical activity can help keep a healthy blood pressure by making the heart stronger and improving circulation. Try to do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of strong aerobic activity per week, plus muscle-strengthening activities on two or more days per week.
Remember to stay well hydrated before, during, and after exercise, and pay attention to your body’s thirst cues to know when to drink more.
You must know how to spot the signs of dehydration and high blood pressure and get medical help when needed.
Severe dehydration needs to be treated right away. Get professional help if you or a loved one presents:
Whenever you spot symptoms of low BP in an otherwise healthy person, ORS oral rehydration solution can be given immediately. It is important to prepare ORS with cooled and boiled drinking water or otherwise safe filtered drinking water. Follow the steps given on the pack. Keep checking blood pressure and blood sugar in people with hypertension and diabetes when managing low BP symptoms. Consult a doctor after giving initial care at home to avoid any complications.
Get in touch with your healthcare provider if you:
Reach out to your healthcare provider if you see high blood pressure readings again and again or have symptoms tied to high blood pressure (like severe headaches, chest pain or trouble breathing). They might suggest changes in your lifestyle, drugs or other steps to help you manage your blood pressure.
It’s critical to understand how dehydration and high blood pressure are linked for your total health. While dehydration can vary your blood pressure, it’s key to make sure you drink enough fluids every day to regulate your blood pressure and cut down on health problems that are related.
Make it a goal to stay hydrated, along with other healthy lifestyle choices like eating a balanced diet and getting regular physical activity. By controlling your hydration and blood pressure, you’ll be in a better place to keep up your general health and wellness.
Not directly. But if you’re dehydrated a lot, it can be harder for your body to keep enough blood volume. This can narrow your blood vessels and raise your blood pressure as a result.
Yes, when you’re dehydrated, your blood pressure could go up as a counter-effect to manage low BP. This happens due to the release of a hormone involved in keeping water.
It’s hard to say for sure how much dehydration can change blood pressure. However, being dehydrated from mild to severe can cause changes in blood pressure that might harm you.
Signs of dehydration are severe thirst, peeing less often, dark peeing, feeling worn out, being confused or feeling dizzy. High blood pressure usually has no clear signs. But with very high blood pressure readings, people might have severe headaches, chest pain, hard time breathing, throwing up, anxiety, confusion, eyesight changes, and dizziness.
Yes, drinks like beet juice, tomato juice, pomegranate juice, cranberry juice, low-fat milk, and tea might help keep or even lower blood pressure. However, you should drink these in addition to the daily water you need to drink, and make sure to ask your healthcare provider about what you should eat and drink based on your health and any restrictions.
Not only are summers in India immensely uncomfortable but they also have the potential to be quite lethal. The relentless sun beating down on you can wreak havoc with your body. But, do not despair. You can actually breeze through summer and keep yourself safe (and sane) and the only way to do that is by being aware of the illnesses that summer can trigger.
When the water content in your body depletes, you get dehydrated. Summer induces you to sweat a lot. Perspiration, as well as fluid loss through urination, means your body does not have enough water to sustain itself. You can tell you are on the verge of dehydration if you-
To prevent these symptoms from setting in, all you need to do is chug down plenty of water at regular intervals. You can also opt for green coconut water or ‘lassi’. Do not forget to munch on as many watery fruits as possible. Fruits like watermelons, grapes, papayas or mangoes can replenish your body’s water supply.
Read More: How to Stay Hydrated?
If the temperature soars beyond 40 degrees or celsius, you need to be very wary of the threat of sunstroke. This is actually categorized as a health emergency. Exposure to heat for a long stretch of time in conjunction with dehydration messes with the body’s ability to regulate internal temperature. This triggers sunstroke, which can damage your brain cells and be lethal.
You can foretell the onset of sunstroke from these symptoms-
To avert sunstroke, drink plenty of fluids, unfurl your umbrella when you step outside, avoid going out between 12 noon and 3 PM and wear comfortable cotton clothing.
Hay fever is a kind of allergy. When your body’s immunity cannot fight off foreign bodies that enter it, you break out in allergies. It is especially prevalent in early summer when flowers bloom and the pollen comes in contact with your body.
Some indicators of hay fever are-
You can reduce your exposure to allergens if you wear a pollution mask. If you are prone to allergies, consult with your doctor, some medicines can ease the symptoms.
Summer flu or flu as it is more generally known, is a highly contagious respiratory disease.
Dr. M.G. Kartheeka, MBBS, MD
Summer is the time when several dangerous microorganisms such as Salmonella and Clostridium thrive. And they multiply in food. That is why, unless you prepare your food and store it in the right way, you can come down with a severe case of food poisoning.
The signs of food poisoning are-
You can immunize yourself against food poisoning if you avoid undercooked meat, raw vegetables, fish that has not been cooked at high temperature and fast food. These foods are the breeding ground for harmful microorganisms.
Heat exhaustion, headache, dizziness, weakness, and hyperthermia are commonly seen in summer season. Getting adequate hydration and a limited exposure to sun should be tried as far as possible.
Dr. Ashish Bajaj, M.B.B.S., M.D.
5. Sunburns
When you expose yourself to the sun for an extended duration, the harmful ultraviolet rays (UVA, UVB) can penetrate your delicate skin leading to a condition called sunburns. This condition is characterised by itchy, dry and red skin that can be accompanied by nausea, fever or chills. In cases where the burns are severe, there may be blisters and the skin may peel once the condition subsides.
What Can You Do:
You can apply a good sunscreen lotion with a stronger SPF about 20 minutes before getting out in the sun. Also, make sure that the skin is moisturised properly.
6. Chicken pox
One of the most deadly summer diseases in India is pox or chickenpox. This viral condition manifests as small fluid-filled blisters all over the body. This condition usually affects small children; however, sometimes adults who are diabetic, have a weakened immune system, have cancer or other such underlying medical conditions may get affected too. This contagious disease spreads through air-borne particles that are spread when an infected person coughs or sneezes, or if the caregiver comes in direct contact with the infected person. Sometimes, the infection may stay dormant until the apt weather conditions arise to support the infection.
What Can You Do
The best you can do is to get a chickenpox shot and prevent yourself from being around the infected person. The infected person should be kept quarantined at home with minimum contact.
7. Jaundice
Another deadly disease that you need to watch out for during the summer months is jaundice. This condition may affect anyone who consumes contaminated food or water. Hepatitis A virus gets into the body through the faeces-oral route, and this happens when you consume water or food that is contaminated with the faeces of an infected person. This condition can become severe and affect the liver too. The main symptoms of jaundice include yellowish skin, pale eyes, dark-coloured urine and itchy skin
What Can You Do
One of the most effective ways to keep this infection at bay is by avoiding the exposure to this kind of infection. Maintaining a healthy weight, managing your cholesterol levels and putting a limit to your alcohol consumption may help in preventing the condition.
Read More: 7 Foods to Eat During Food Poisoning
Also, don’t forget to wash your hands before cooking or eating.
Summer can be a very taxing season for your body. But if you adopt a few measures you can easily fight off diseases and stay healthy.
Read More: 8 Best Foods to Eat During Summer To Keep Your Body Cool
Disclaimer: The above information has been prepared by a qualified medical professional and may not represent the practices followed universally. The suggestions listed in this article constitute relatively common advice given to patients and since every patient is different, you are advised to consult your physician, if in doubt, before acting upon this information. Lupin Limited has only facilitated the distribution of this information to you in the interest of patient education and welfare.
Drink eight glasses of water every day – You have probably read and heard this often to believe that it is the gospel of truth for keeping your body adequately hydrated. However, drinking eight glasses of water a day is nothing more than a popularly propagated health myth.
Certainly, keeping your body duly hydrated contributes to your overall health and well-being, as every cell in your body needs fluids for proper functioning. Even slight dehydration can interfere with the body’s ability to function well and manifest itself and form symptoms such as light-headedness, irritability, and headaches.
It is, perhaps, this fear of dehydration that has led self-proclaimed health experts and overzealous fitness trainers to put a number on the daily water requirement of the human body. Be that as it may, it is not possible to generalize the water requirement of the entire human race. The 8-glasses-a-day is but a generalized figure that may or may not meet, or even exceed your body’s requisite water intake.
Health experts and doctors find themselves at a loss as to where the ‘eight glasses of water a day’ theory originated from! A 2002 study titled, ‘Drink eight glasses of water a day at least. Really? Is there scientific evidence for ”8×8”?’ tried to get to the bottom of this myth and traced its roots to a single paragraph in a report dated 1945 by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council in the US that states that adults should consume nearly 2.5 litres of water every day, which roughly equates to eight glasses of water.
However, the same report also noted that a large part of this water requirement is met by water content in the foods we consume and supplemented by beverages such as tea, coffee, milk, and even soft drinks. Somehow, the 2.5 litres figure stood out and gave way to the eight glasses of water a day theory.
Based on some studies I had read, your brain doesn’t function properly when you are dehydrated that might lead to cognitive issues. Elderly persons who are unable to fulfill their daily water intake might face difficulties in engaging in cognitive activities.
Dr. Siddharth Gupta, MD
More than how many glasses of water you must drink, it is important to drink enough water. Here are some of the health benefits you will derive:
You might have noticed that on days when you drink less water, you might experience joint pain. This is because water acts as lubrication of joints. The synovial fluid present at the joint consists of 70-80% of water. Any less water in the body might reduce the production of this joint-lubricating liquid.
Dr. Rajeev Singh, BAMS
If one looks at the World Health Organization’s recommendation for water intake, it becomes clear that the amount of water needed by the body varies according to different physiological and demographic factors such as age, sex, location, climate, activity levels, and more.
For the sake of aggregation, the average total water intake has been pegged at 2.7 litres for women and 3.7 litres for men, ‘total’ is the keyword here.
This means that you do not need to drink 2.7 litres or 3.7 litres of water straight from the faucet – Our food intake meets about 20 per cent of this value. Beverages such as fruit juices, soft drinks, milk, tea, and coffee also contribute toward a portion of the remaining 80 per cent of the body’s water requirement.
In addition to this, the body’s water requirement may vary depending on certain lifestyle factors:
Your body gives you signs that you need to drink water long before dehydration sets in. The most practical rule of thumb is to keep a bottle of water handy and drink whenever you feel thirsty. Therefore, you may or may not drink eight glasses of water every day!
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Disclaimer: The information included on this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical treatment by a healthcare professional. Because of unique individual needs, the reader should consult their physician to determine the appropriateness of the information for the reader’s situation.
Summer has just begun, but the soaring temperatures are already setting new record highs regarding ‘hottest summer days.’ While we associate this season with holidays, outdoor activities like picnics, swimming or vacations, summer pose important health risks too. Dehydration is one of the most significant health concerns this season. Unbeknownst to many, dehydration can be dangerous if ignored or not appropriately treated. Also, dehydration is much more than just proper water intake.
To understand this condition better, Dr Prabhat Rajan Sinha, an internal medicine specialist at Aakash Healthcare, spoke to us at length on dehydration – its symptoms, cure and prevention.
The deficit of water and solutes in the body is called dehydration. The final symptoms of this, due to excess perforation as solutes are being lost from the body, causes dehydration. The signs and symptoms are as follows – the patient may feel very tired and lazy. They may experience low BP, tachycardia or palpitations or may panic, feel anxious, etc. On examination, the mucous membrane, i.e. the skin within the mouth becomes completely dry and the skin elasticity decreases. When the patient of dehydration suffers low BP, their pulse rate is very high as the heart tries hard to compensate for the loss of fluids. The heart beats faster to pump blood and fluid requirement to the entire body.
In the summer season, if you are exposed to extreme heat, it causes a loss of fluids from the body. If you are a patient of gastroenteritis or diarrhoea which are common ailments in summer and if the patient is already borderline dehydrated, i.e. recurring vomiting or low intake of water, these are the leading causes of dehydration in summer. There are other organic causes like a patient with diabetes who has very high sugar (500 or 600). High sugar causes frequent urination which leads to dehydration.
This entirely depends on your body requirements. On average, one and a half litres of water is a must. Every day our body, when we inhale and exhale, i.e. humidification of breath, plus the insensible loss, i.e. water going out of your body which is 700 to 800 ml. We lose water through the urine as well as the faeces where our body secretes up to a litre of water.
The requirement of water also depends on the amount of activity one does. Activities that demand a high level of exertion, tend to lose more water. Ideally, you should be able to maintain a proper level of hydration in the body.
In summer, it is best to consume 2.5 litres to 3 litres of water. But people who have sedentary jobs, sitting in air-conditioned offices all day long, even 2 litres of water is good. An important marker to check your level of hydration is the frequency of urination. It is ideal that every 4-5 hours, you should urinate, i.e. urine should at least 50ml per hour. If the bladder capacity of a person is 250 ml to 300 ml, they should feel an urge to urinate every 5-6 hours.
A patient will feel lethargic, palpitations or even feel feverish. They may complain of dizziness, feel low in energy. As the level of dehydration increases, the patient will experience severe symptoms. They may go into shock as the BP will rapidly fall. The patient may collapse or have a syncopal attack (fainting).
On examining the patient, it is important to understand the level of dehydration – is it mild, is it moderate or is it severe? If a patient has a history of dehydration or a patient is brought in when unconscious and their BP is less than 90, then we need to start the treatment accordingly. They must be given fluids containing solutes. In the beginning, the solutes are pushed faster to get the BP above 90 systolic, i.e. an upper level of BP. This is very important because if the BP remains below 90, it means that not all organs in the body are getting perfusion correctly. If it is mild dehydration, you can go slow and push the fluid with solutes slower at the rate of 60-100 ml per hour. But if the patient is in shock, we must push one litre of fluid in an hour. Additionally, the symptoms of dehydration should be treated too. If the patient has recurring vomiting, we need to address that as well or stop diarrhoea.
If the patient is suffering from a high fever, it is important to cool the patient down and bring down the temperature.
Don’t step out in extreme heat. Avoid high-exertion activities in the afternoons as the fluid loss will be high. Ensure proper fluid intake and have fluids with solutes. Eat fruits and vegetables that have more water content. Maintain a proper diet and do not skip meals. Indulge in seasonal fruits – watermelon. Drink at least eight glasses of water.
Wear protective clothes, stay adequately covered. Wear cotton clothes and ditch the nylons or other synthetic materials. Wear colours like white, sky blue or other lighter, pastel shades. They reflect off the heat and don’t attract heat, unlike the darker shades, primarily black.
Elderly. This is because as the age increases, the intake of fluids decreases. As we know, our body is made up of 33% water. But as we grow older, the water content in the body lowers and is replaced by fats in the case of the elderly and diabetic patients or other chronically ill patients. Even infants and small children are at risk.
Disclaimer: The information provided here is for educational/awareness purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical treatment by a healthcare professional and should not be relied upon to diagnose or treat any medical condition. The reader should consult a registered medical practitioner to determine the appropriateness of the information and before consuming any medication. PharmEasy does not provide any guarantee or warranty (express or implied) regarding the accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of the information; and disclaims any liability arising thereof.
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