Up to 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. And dehydration can be serious enough that you need medical intervention. If you’ve been experiencing bouts of dehydration, it may be time to talk to consider IV hydration.
Here are 5 signs you may need IV hydration.
1. Bad Breath
This may seem like a bit of a weird symptom, but it can be a good sign that you need to up your water intake. Your saliva helps fight bacteria. But when you’re dehydrated, the amount of saliva in your mouth decreases.
That means that your mouth struggles to fight off the types of germs that cause smelly breath.
If you suddenly notice that your breath isn’t smelling too sweet, you should definitely drink some water ASAP.
2. Confusion
This can be a serious sign that you need IV hydration. Confusion and/or dizziness is a sign that your blood pressure is dropping, which means you need to get rehydrated quickly.
If you notice that you’re feeling out of it or confused and you haven’t had a lot to drink in the past few hours, it’s a tip-off that you need to drink some fluids. It typically won’t happen suddenly, which means you should pay attention if you suddenly feel like you’re in a brain fog.
3. Food Cravings
Our livers need water so they can function properly. When they don’t get it, they signal our brains that we need fuel. However our brains can get a little confused, and instead of giving us a craving for water, they sometimes give us food cravings instead.
Before you give into any sudden food cravings, drink a glass or two of water and see how you feel. If you no longer crave the food, it’s a sign that your body really just needed some fluids.
4. Loss of Elasticity
When you have severe dehydration, your skin will look dry and shriveled and will lose its elasticity. The best way to see if you have this symptom? Pinch the skin on the back of your hand and pull it up. When you let it go, it should quickly snap back where it belongs. If you’re dehydrated, the skin will resume its normal shape much more slowly than usual.
This is because your skin loses elasticity when it doesn’t have enough moisture.
5. No Sweat
This is a key sign that you’re seriously dehydrated. If you’re hot and not sweating, you may even have heat stroke or heat exhaustion. This usually happens when you have such a low reserve of fluid that your body tries to hold onto what it has left.
Since sweat helps cool your body down, you need to immediately see a doctor if you stop sweating.
Do You Need IV Hydration?
Even if you only experience some of the less severe signs of dehydration, you need to get liquids into your body as soon as you can. Avoid drinks like soda and choose water or a drink that includes electrolytes.
If you need to be rehydrated quickly, you may want to choose to get your liquids through an IV. Give us a call for professional help.