5 Signs of Dehydration in Adults and Unexpected Reasons for It

Rohan Mathew

In This Article we Learn About 5 Signs of Dehydration in Adults and Unexpected Reasons for It

Around 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. Knowing the unusual signs of dehydration could help you prevent a health emergency.

Dehydration occurs when your body doesn’t get enough fluids/water. Even a mild case of dehydration is capable of affecting bodies in highly uncomfortable ways. We may not be aware but drinking contaminated water can also lead to diseases like diarrhea which can also cause dehydration. Consider an inline water filter for your home to make sure that your family only consume clean water.

A lot of dehydration cases aren’t obvious. It’s up to you to spot the signs in time and exercise good judgment.

Here are five unusual dehydration symptoms and why they occur:

  1. Bad Breath

Bad breath is an unusual dehydration symptom, but it happens often and makes sense. After all, water is necessary for producing sufficient amounts of saliva.

When you’re dehydrated, it dries out your mouth due to not being able to produce enough saliva. This causes bacterial growth, and the end result is foul-smelling breath.

Even skipping a glass of water or two can affect how your breath smells. Drinking water frequently will keep your mouth nice-smelling and hydrated.

  1. Muscle Cramps

Muscle cramps are one of the common dehydration effects of overexercising. They’re more likely to occur when exercising in hot temperatures. Even simply failing to hydrate during an intensive workout causes muscle cramps.

Heat illness is often responsible for dehydration-influenced muscle cramps. The body can’t cool itself off while dehydrated, which leads to overheating and heat illness.

Always drink water before and after exercise. Making sure you have water on hand during workouts will also reduce your dehydration risk. Water, electrolyte-infused water, and Pedialyte are the best fluids for dehydration.

  1. Nausea

Nausea starts up once dehydration kicks in. At this point, even if you do drink fluids, there’s a good chance you’ll vomit them. This symptom is dangerous because it worsens dehydration that’s already bad.

Experts link this nausea to the low blood sugar that’s caused by dehydration. It’s also linked to the dizziness dehydration causes.

Your best bet for beating dehydration-induced nausea is getting fluids into directly your system via IV fluids for dehydration. You’ll learn what to expect from IV hydration through the aforementioned link. It’s the most effective dehydration treatment there is.

  1. Dark Urine

Your urine’s color will tell you whether or not you’re dehydrated. Normal urine is yellow-tinged but mostly clear. Dehydrated urine is a darker yellow or orange color.

Water is responsible for diluting the yellow pigments in urine. That’s why the more water you drink, the clearer your urine is. Dehydration messes up those pigments by making them darker.

  1. No More Tears

Being dehydrated impacts your ability to cry. Although you might have the urge to cry, no tears may come out.

The explanation here is obvious: When your body doesn’t have enough water, it can’t produce tears. Lack of tears leads to discomfort and dry eyes.

Notice Signs of Dehydration Before it’s Too Late

Around 80% of working Americans claim they don’t drink enough water. Drinking plenty of water will prevent these unusual signs of dehydration before they ever happen.

Make sure to drink enough water if you’re drinking alcohol. Alcohol is a diuretic, which makes you lose more fluids and puts you at risk for dehydration.

Enrich your body and mind at the same time—check out our health articles. They’ll inspire you to embrace wellness.