Summer is approaching and its intense heat, and with it the risk of dehydration. In fact, the body continuously eliminates water, of which it is made up of 60%, through urine, respiration and perspiration. One last factor accentuated by the high temperatures.
To compensate for this elimination of water, the slogan is simple: you have to drink. Cela permet d’éviter les desymptomes de la deshydratación, como una fatigue anormale, una parte de poids, de la fièvre ou encore des vertiges, qui peut mener dans les cas les más graves à compromettre le bon funcionnement des organes vitaux, avertit l’ Health Insurance.
But how much should you drink? What are the good liquids to consume? And what hours of the day? BFMTV.com puts together some tips to avoid accidents.
• Drink before you are thirsty.
Drinking when you are thirsty is already too late.
“Drink water regularly without waiting to be thirsty”, also insists Public Health France.
It’s a phrase we hear often, and for good reason. Being thirsty is already a sign that the body is dehydrated. So don’t wait until you feel the urge to drink, especially in hot weather.
• Drink regularly and in small sips.
To avoid this feeling, it is necessary to drink regularly throughout the day. Regarding the amount of liquid ingested, it is advisable to ingest it in small sips.
“The main thing is to drink regularly, throughout the day, it is better to drink small amounts several times than a lot once or twice,” said Jérôme Marty, general practitioner, president of the French Union for Free Medicine last summer on our antenna. .
In fact, our digestive system and stomach prefer this frequency of hydration to less regular large amounts of water, Health Insurance abounds.
• Drink more than usual
If it is normally recommended to consume 1.5 liters of water per day, this amount must be adapted when mercury rises because the body sweats more to regulate our internal temperature.
“Thanks to perspiration, the body regulates its temperature. The more it rises due to fever, sports activity or exposure to heat, the more the body cools down thanks to perspiration. (…) Therefore, it is essential to drink more water when outside temperatures are high”, explains the public service.
• Avoid alcohol
Drinking yes, but not just any drink. Alcohol is strongly discouraged when the sun is beating down. Its diuretic effect stimulates the production of urine, and therefore favors dehydration. It is also advisable to avoid abusing coffee and tea, which have the same effects. Sugary drinks should also be consumed in moderation.
Water is still the best drink to stay hydrated.
• Coconut water, the ally of intense heat
Coconut water is a drink that you don’t necessarily think about, and yet it can be your ally when it’s hot. In fact, it is very rich in water, it quenches thirst and also contains vitamins B and C, as well as minerals such as calcium, potassium and magnesium. Essential elements, evacuated by perspiration.
• Prefer drinks at room temperature
In hot weather, some may be tempted to consume very cold drinks. But that’s not necessarily a good idea.
“If you drink something cold once, it’s fine. But if you drink something very cold, you have the feeling of coolness except that you give the body, especially in the stomach where there are sensors, the information that the temperature drops.” suddenly, and therefore the boiler will have to be started up again”, explained Alain Ducardonnet, a medical consultant for BFMTV, a few years ago.
On the contrary, drinking hot can have an interest: by increasing the internal temperature, it makes the body sweat, which therefore seeks to cool down. But the risk is sweating too much and therefore dehydration.
Therefore, according to Alain Ducardonnet, the ideal is to “drink water at room temperature, a little cooler (…) or warm”.
• Eat foods rich in water
Another tip to drink more is to eat more foods that contain water. An easy gesture in summer because many seasonal fruits and vegetables fill up with water.
We can cite cucumber, radish, escarole, tomato, cucumber, melon or even watermelon.
But be careful to eat them raw. When these foods are cooked, they lose their water, and therefore their interest in contributing to hydration.
• Have a bottle of water with you.
Lastly, to ensure that you apply all these tips, and in particular that you drink regularly, in sufficient quantities, throughout the day, before feeling thirsty and in small sips, there is nothing better than traveling with a gourd containing water that can be fill. as the day progresses.
Source: BFM TV
