As we age, our bodies may not signal thirst as clearly as when we were younger. Meaning we need to be more mindful of our hydration needs as seniors. Are you drinking enough water every day to stay healthy? Let’s look at some simple strategies to make sure you’re staying hydrated and feeling healthy.
According to a Google search, our body is made up of 60% water. As we get older, especially during hot weather, it’s essential to nourish ourselves with the fluid needed to stay hydrated.
Always talk to your doctor before making changes to your water intake, especially if you have any health concerns or are on any prescription medications.
The Hydration Advantage: Benefits for Seniors
Your body needs water to function, and below are a few reasons why you might consider replacing water with some of your usual daily drinks:
- It is a thirst-quenching beverage that has zero calories. Zero calories!!
- Drink water before a meal, it will help your stomach feel full. Will you eat less and have a significant weight loss? You will have to judge that yourself.
- It aids in the digestion of food and pushes the nutrients through your system.
- While water is busy pushing good stuff through, it also moves toxins out of your body.
- It helps your kidneys function properly. Also, it may help prevent excruciating kidney stones. Having had a kidney stone myself, I can tell you it’s the most pain I’ve ever been in. If you have kidney issues, please speak to a doctor.
- Water helps hydrate your skin and hair. You’ll still get wrinkles, but you’ve earned those babies, so enjoy them.
- Drinking water can regulate your body temperature, which is one of the many reasons doctors tell us to drink more fluids when we are not feeling well. (At the end of this post is a homemade electrolyte recipe for when you’re feeling unwell)
- Water helps prevent heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Hydration Goals. How Much Water is Enough?
The common recommendation is around 7-9 cups (56-72 ounces, 1892 ish ml) of water a day. Your needs may differ based on your health and activity level. The recommended water intake isn’t a hard and fast rule so I encourage you to discuss with your doctor how much water you should drink. Have I said this enough yet? 😊
Fair warning: If you begin to drink more water, consider staying close to a bathroom for a few weeks until your body adjusts. So, maybe don’t start a new water regime if you’re planning a long car ride or plane trip. Your body will get used to a new way sooner than you think, and bathroom trips (and more trips) will be less frequent.
You Can Have Your Coffee and Drink It Too.
While you might want to consider drinking mainly plain water, these other beverages count towards daily fluid: coffee, tea, freshly squeezed fruit and vegetable juices, and homemade low-sugar smoothies.
Avoid or limit hydrating with high-sugar drinks like cocktails, pop (soda), sports drinks, prepackaged fruit and veggie juices, premade smoothies, and high-calorie specialty coffees. Full disclosure: I make myself one café mocha or cup of coffee with sweetened cream every Saturday morning to celebrate the weekend.
If you are drinking more beverages that aren’t water, cut back on some of those drinks and swap them for water; it’s a positive step toward a healthier body.
We are not doctors but we’ll give you a few more suggestions for getting water and electrolytes into your body. Consider electrolyte powder tubes, electrolyte hydration gummies, and water flavoring/enhancers to help water taste better. Again, talk to your doctor.
Recognizing the Signs and Symptoms of Dehydration in Seniors.
It is important to make sure your body is well hydrated. You become dehydrated when your body loses too much fluid that you do not replace. For seniors, dehydration can happen faster than you think and is preventable.
Here are a few signs of dehydration:
- Thirst
- Dry mouth
- Not urinating enough, and when you do, your urine is dark yellow or brown. When your body is well hydrated, your urine should be lemonade color.
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Confusion (severe dehydration)
- Muscle cramps
- Irritability
- You’re feeling hungry, and it’s not mealtime. Drink a glass of water and wait about 20 minutes. Often, your body needs water, not food. But DO NOT replace meals with water. You know that already, don’t you?
Easy Ways to Make Water Taste Better.
Add fruits like your favorite berries, and citrus, and pair the fruit with cucumbers or herbs to infuse the water with flavor.
You can muddle the fruit and herbs on the bottom of a pitcher or glass jar, add water, and let the flavors infuse in the refrigerator for a few hours. Then strain the water and discard the fruit and herbs. You’ll have a delicious, naturally sweetened, refreshing drink to enjoy.
Some combinations to try: are lemon and ginger, blueberry and lemon, lime and strawberry, sweet basil and citrus or berries, and cucumber with ginger and fresh mint. You are limited by your imagination. What is your favorite combination of fruits and herbs to infuse water?
While you are learning to drink plain or naturally infused unsweetened water, why not find a reusable bottle, mug, or cup? If you can afford it, have several different types of vessels for your water.
What is the Best Vessel for Your Water?
If you’re using disposable plastic bottles, think about switching to glass, stainless steel, or BPA reusable plastic bottles for an ecological-friendlier choice.
Full disclosure, interweb readers: Sister and I do give away bottled water to package and grocery delivery folks.
Glass bottles are the ideal choice and last longer than plastic (obviously). The downside is it’s heavy, fragile, and can break easily. I don’t use glass bottles or jars because they are too heavy for arthritic hands, and I fear I will shatter one by dropping it.
Stainless steel is another good choice. The stainless-steel bottles can last years if properly taken care of. The downside of stainless steel is sometimes the water tastes tin-like. If you have a suggestion for a stainless-steel bottle that does not leave a tin aftertaste, please let us know in the comments below.
For me, Tupperware BPA water bottles are the ones I use daily. Tupperware is not an affiliate sponsor of this blog. I like using them because the bottles are lightweight and the shape is easy for my arthritic hands to hold.
Do you have a favorite brand or type of water bottle? Help the community out by sharing your suggestions in the comments.
Replace Your Water Bottle Often to Be on The Safe Side.
Until researching information for this post, I didn’t know how often we should replace old water bottles. It’s not enough to wash the bottles daily bacteria and toxins can still grow in your plastic BPA-safe bottles. Therefore, we should change our plastic bottles once a year. I’m still using the same Tupperware water bottles that for two years and will now order new bottles.
In Conclusion.
You deserve to feel healthy (we all do), and properly hydrating yourself is a starting point.
Of course, speak to your doctor to find the safe level of fluid your body needs.
You and your innards (that is a word) will feel better when sufficiently hydrated and it’s easy to do. Becoming dehydrated puts your life in danger especially as we age.
Drink water, plain or infused, and enjoy its benefits. Please share your hydration tips with our community.
Oh, and I apologize to those folks who measure fluids in milliliters. I think my measurements might be a bit off. Would you KINDLY correct any mistakes in the comments so the measurements will be accurate?
Homemade electrolyte drink recipe.
- Two cups (16 ounces or 450 ish ml.) plain water
- One pinch of salt (about 1/8 teaspoon or to your taste)
- 1 to 2 Tablespoons lemon or lime juice (adjust to your taste)
- 1 to 2 teaspoons honey, agave, or maple syrup (to your taste)
Put all ingredients into an 18-to 20-ounce (475-ish ml) drinking glass or water bottle and stir or shake the contents. Add ice if you like.
Please share your tips for making drinking water more enjoyable. You’ll be helping your fellow solo seniors to stay healthy and hydrated. Thanks for your time.
Peace.
JoAnn