Top Five Signs of Wintertime Dehydration

Dehydration is often considered only an issue during the summertime, when in fact it is much easier to become dehydrated in the winter and with more serious consequences!

Factors like dry air, cooler temperatures, and wind chill contribute to dehydration in the wintertime. When we breathe in the colder, drier air of the winter, our bodies need to humidify and heat up the air to our body’s temperature causing us to lose one to two liters of water a day through evaporation from the lungs.

Also, it is easier to skip drinking water in the wintertime, since we are less likely to feel thirsty in colder weather. Dehydration in the wintertime can accelerate frostbite and hypothermia!

Here are the top 5 signs that you are dehydrated:

1. Your mouth and throat are dry, or your tongue feels bigger than your mouth. Dry mouth or a swollen tongue are sure signs that you are dehydrated
2. You feel tired, sluggish, and over all fatigue. When the body suffers from chronic dehydration, blood flow and blood pressure drop, causing muscles and nerve function to burn out.
3. Standing up too quickly causes dizziness. Orthostatic hypotension, characterized by a head rush or dizzy spell from standing too quickly, is another sign on chronic dehydration.
4. Your urine is concentrated and dark yellow. When blood pressure levels fall due to chronic dehydration, your kidneys try to store water, instead of expelling it causing dark yellow urine.
5. Your heart rate increases. Severe dehydration can cause heart palpitations or heart spasms in the actual heart muscle.

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