How Hydration Can Help You

Staying Hydrated Can Help Reduce Neuropathy Symptoms. 

Neuropathy Pain Might Be Increased By Dehydration.

Dehydration is talked about so often that we start to tune it out. That’s what happens when you hear the same message over and over again; you become almost immune to hearing it. Well it’s time to tune back in. The first step to improving your neuropathy pain can be so simple and free. Focus on what you put into your body.  

Think about your arteries and veins like a big river. That will almost always flow in some capacity. It is the creeks and the streams off the river that feed the nerves. That is called micro-circulation. If you cannot get blood flow to nerves, what happens?   The nerves die. Well, in order to even think about healing them, micro- circulation has to improve to get proper blood flow and nutrition to the nerves.   One big step in that is HYDRATION.

Why is Water So Important?

The human body contains roughly eleven gallons of water, broken down into these fractional parts:

• Blood is 85% water
• Muscle is 80% water
• The brain is 75% water
• Bones are about 25% water
  
  

Altogether, water makes up about 66% of the human body, which means staying properly hydrated can make a huge difference in your health.  If you're not regularly replenishing water lost from the body, dehydration will occur.  If you're dehydrated, then poor circulation is going to be a factor in why you have nerve pain and numbness.  You cannot even think about healing nerves if you do not have good micro-circulation to those nerves.  

Being hydrated really helps!

How Does Hydration Affect My Neuropathy?

Hydration affects the whole body, so naturally it can exacerbate just about any medical condition. Here are a few of the benefits water provides to those suffering from neuropathy:

• Water helps reduce inflammation. This is a big one, as inflammation is a big problem for many who suffer from neuropathy, and reducing inflammation can provide relief.
• Water cleanses the body and helps remove toxins and free radicals from your system; Since some neuropathy can be caused by toxins in the system, ensuring proper hydration will certainly help in eliminating some of these toxins. This means less inflammation which= less pain.
• Water helps ensure proper blood flow; since some neuropathy can be attributed to decreased blood flow, this is another small thing that can potentially make a big difference. This means opportunity for better micro circulation.

How Much Water Should I Drink to Stay Hydrated?

You used to hear people say you should drink eight glasses of water a day. However, “one size fits all” advice is never going to work for everyone. A better way to look at it is aiming to drink half your body weight in ounces. A 180 lb man would need 90 ounces of water each day- that’s more than 11 glasses! However, a 110 lb woman needs a little less than seven glasses a day.

Calculate the amount of water that’s right for you and develop a plan!

Add Some Flavor to Your Water!

I’ve heard people complain about drinking water because they don’t like the taste. Here are a few tips to make all that water a little easier to swallow:

• Make a decaf iced tea. Make a nice peppermint or raspberry tea and keep it in the refrigerator- even just one or two teabags in a gallon of water adds enough of a hint of flavor that it won’t seem like boring old water anymore.
• Make it sparkle! A glass of fizzy water can be festive and fun- add a lemon or lime wedge and it’s like a fun little mock-tail.
• Make your own fruit water: Fill a pitcher with water and add some sliced cucumber or a couple of lemon wedges to give it a hint of flavor.
• Try a water filtration system if you want to improve the overall taste of the water from your tap.

Get creative and add flavors – but avoid adding anything with caffeine or you’ll defeat the purpose.

Tips to Help You Reach Your Hydration Goal

Habits can be hard to break and hard to form, so making a plan is the best way to stick with it. If you’re used to drinking a lot of caffeinated beverages, you’ll want to start cutting back a bit in tandem with adding more water.

• Start the day with a large glass of water – knock out the first 10 ounces of your daily intake by giving your thirsty body the fluid it needs after a night of rest. If you’re a coffee drinker, try to reduce to just one or two cups, and add an extra glass of water for every two cups of coffee.
• Try using a dedicated pitcher or water bottle(s) filled with your target amount so you can see your progress throughout the day.
• Keep a hydration journal. Similar to a food journal, it helps change habits when you see it on paper. Make notes about how much you consume and when, and add notes about how you feel as a result. When you’re properly hydrated, you feel better all around, so it will help to cement the good habits when you really take note of the benefits.

By now, you get it- hydration is key to overall health and can reduce pain and numbness of neuropathy. Share this blog far and wide – I guarantee someone you love can also benefit from being better hydrated!

The whole Momentum Health team and I are dedicated to bringing back your quality of life.

Something I hear from my patients on a regular basis is: “I wish I would have contacted you sooner.” Truly, if setting an appointment is the first step towards wellness, why wouldn’t you call today?