Let’s get better together: Benefits of Hydrating
Hi! I’m Caroline, a certified Health Coach and Yoga Instructor, living with Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency and hEDS. Welcome to the space where I share what has helped me feel better. I’m glad you’re here and hope this helps you feel better too. In today’s post I’m discussing hydration for people like us. Remember, any supplement info or experience I share is purely anecdotal and personal. Please talk to your doctor or healthcare professional before starting any new supplements.
I think we all know by now that drinking water is key when it comes to health and staying well. So why is it even more important for people with EPI and hEDS? Number one reason for both is that the supplements and/or medications we are usually prescribed require water to be absorbed or to be effective. Digestive enzymes especially require more water. If you don’t drink enough water with them it can cause nausea and constipation; they also will be less effective. For hEDS, water is an important component of tissue and since we are already struggling to produce healthy connective tissue, adding dehydration to the problem will increase issues. Another reason it’s important for people with EPI to hydrate properly is the symptom of diarrhea we usually suffer from causes dehydration. We also suffer from malabsorption and water helps with absorption. I’m not a doctor so I’m not going to focus too much on the medical side of hydration. What you need to know is that while all people need to hydrate, we have an increased need. Let’s discuss how we can hydrate properly.
Tip #1: Eat more fruit and vegetables.
20% of our hydration comes from what we eat(cite source here). Adding in fruits and veggies will increase your hydration. Citrus, berries, and melons are excellent fruit sources of water. Bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and celery are water filled veggies. Raw will contain the most water but might be harder to digest so find what works for you and if they need a little heat that’s okay too. Try not to over cook them so they keep most of their water content.
Tip #2: Add natural flavor and electrolytes to your water.
Adding lemon, lime, berries, cucumber, mint, or ginger can enhance the flavor and make it more delicious to sip. You can also sip hot water with lemon and ginger for a yummy digestive boost. Adding electrolytes will help the absorption of the water and replace the electrolytes lost due to dehydration.
Tip#3: Set sipping timers.
Set alarms on your phone to hydrate. Set them to go off during the day so that you’re consistently sipping rather than trying to get all your hydration in at once. This also helps to train your brain to make drinking water a habit. Eventually you may not even need the timers.
Tip #4: Carry a reusable water bottle with the ounces marked.
Seeing how much you do or don’t drink throughout your day can help you gage how much improvement you’re needing. Having the ounces marked can help you reach your hydration goals by tracking the amount you’ve had. This is also helpful if you track your hydration in an app.
Tip #5: Use a fitness app to track your ounces.
There are tons of apps out there so pick the one that works for you and track how much water you’re drinking. This will help you see patterns. For example, I drink less water on the weekends when I am out and about. Thanks to tracking my intake, I know I tend to get dehydrated Saturday/Sunday compared to the work week when I am at home and able to refill my bottle as much as I want. Knowing your patterns is a great way to figure out how to make the necessary changes.
To summarize, eat more plants, make your water fancy, make sipping a habit, and track your ounces.
I hope this was helpful and would love to hear from you: connect with me through email at cohelocoaching@gmail.com or on TikTok at @cohelocoaching