Humans are made up of roughly 70% water, so when we are dehydrated, it can effect every system in our body. From our skin to our gastrointestinal tract, lacking sufficient amounts of water can cause all sorts of symptoms and bring on all sorts of ailments. Here’s a symptom we do not usually associate with dehydration: hunger. Next time you feel hungry, try drinking water first to see if it is your body telling you it needs more hydration instead.
Personally, I misunderstood my symptoms for many months before I discovered what was going on. Several times a week, I was coming down with these really bad headaches and horrible nasal congestion. I assumed it was allergies or sinus related, so I would take the pain for a while, but it was so bad that I had to run for the Advil and Sudafed. I am the type of person that hates taking medication…maybe because I am a pharmacist and know that these foreign chemicals always come with side effects that can cause damage long after I am over what I took it for in the first place. Or maybe because I have been doing so much research on our microbiome and am learning how medications devastate the good bacteria we are supposed to have in our gut. Or both reasons really. So I knew there had to be something else I could do to combat these reoccurring symptoms. God to the rescue…
You see, I had ordered a product from Amazon, but I received the “wrong item” instead…or so I thought it was wrong. A bit frustrated, I attempted to return this unwanted package and was met with issue after issue. Guess I should have taken the sign then, but I was determined to get rid of this “useless” product. After a week or so, I was finally able to return what I got by “mistake,” and moved on with life. About a week later, I was at one of those warehouse stores and, there it was again! The same exact product! It is called Liquid IV. I said, “Ok Lord, I think You are trying to tell me something here.” So I bought it and, the next time I started to get those horrible headaches and painful sinus congestion, I took a packet. Within hours, all my symptoms were gone without having to take any medication. My issue was not sinus or allergies or just a headache, it was dehydration.
Most people do go around slightly dehydrated. Now, we can quickly go online and get lists of the usual symptoms of dehydration, but we also have to think outside the box. Know your own body. Most of those lists do not talk about hunger or the headache/sinus congestion combo. Next time you get some kind of curious ongoing symptom, try water or some kind of hydrating packets and see if it helps. Again, water is vital for our optimal health and can effect every part of our bodies. Don’t forget to hydrate!
<>< Peace, Diane
