The Danger Of Dehydration

Surprising as it may seem, getting dehydrated is one of the many reasons why people are brought to the hospital. Regardless of how simple the definition of the condition is, it actually poses to be a huge danger that could lead to various complications and conditions. Here are some of the most serious dangers that it can bring you.

Body Drought

Your brain, which works round the clock, requires more water compared to any other portion of your body. Under normal conditions, your brain contains about 20% of the overall blood which circulates through your body. It’s estimated that man’s brain cells actually consists of 85% water.

These cell’s energy requirements aren’t only achieved by metabolizing glucose, but also by producing “hydroelectric” energy from water through cell osmosis. Your brain greatly depends on its self-generated energy source to maintain its efficiency and complex processes.

If your body becomes deficient in water, and this affects your brain, you would experience a reduction of your brain’s energy supply.  This results in a reduced vital function; thus, the word depression.

Low levels of brain energy would hinder you in meeting your social and personal challenges. It can also lead to anxiety, anger, fear and other complex emotional problems. You can feel stressed, drained, depressed and lethargic.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

In relation to the brain’s dehydration, you can also get the condition called chronic fatigue syndrome.  This is a major sign of progressive dehydration of the brain. It is also a sign of consequent preservation of metabolic toxins on your brain. Nevertheless, this condition could disappear by itself if you would stop stimulating your brain with caffeine, drugs, animal products, tobacco, etc. and begin a program of body re-hydration.

Blood Vessel Constriction

When your body’s cells are deprived of water, your brain’s pituitary gland produces a neurotransmitter called vasopressin. This is a hormone which has the ability of constricting blood vessels in areas in where there is cellular dehydration. When you’re dehydrated, the amount of water on your bloodstream is reduced. Thus, Vasopressin would squeeze your vascular system so that there would be a reduction in their fluid volume.

The whole process is needed to continue having adequate pressure to allow you to have a steady water filtration on your cells. Hence, vasopressin would have a hypertensive property. Because of this, you get to have high blood pressure when dehydrated.

Gallstones

There is a similar effect with your liver’s bile ducts. When it constricts because of the limited water availability, gallstone formation occurs. This is actually a direct outcome of dehydration.

Alcoholism

When you drink alcohol, you suppress vasopressin secretion. Hence, you heighten cellular dehydration. If you have excessive alcohol consumption, cellular dehydration might reach extremely dangerously levels. For your body to survive this “drought,” it would secrete more stress hormones, which includes the addictive endorphins.

As time passes by with your regular alcohol consumption (every day for a couple of years) dehydration will increase. Endorphin production would also be an addictive habit. In no time, you can develop alcoholism, which is a problem that has devastating penalty on your social and personal life.

Kidney Damage And Water Retention

Whenever there is a water shortage in your body, the Renin-Angiotensin system is activated. This system directs your body to keep hold of water wherever possible. Your kidneys are instructed to inhibit your urination. It will also tighten your capillaries and your vascular system, especially in areas which aren’t as important as your brain and heart.

Simultaneously, it would stimulate an increase on salt absorption, which would help in retaining more water. Unless your body returns to normal hydration levels, your RA system would remain activated. Nevertheless, this would also mean that your blood pressure remains high for a very long time, could eventually lead you to develop cardiovascular diseases.

Your kidneys also get damaged since urine retention and hypertension are the major causes of damage. Main treatments for conditions like these usually consist of diuretic drugs and limited salt consumption. Either method can have intense drawbacks.

For instance, diuretic drugs are used to attain normal blood pressure. Reduced salt intake on the other hand strongly weaken your body’s emergency labors to bank the little water you have left for cell functions. This results in another kind of stress response, which causes even more dehydration. In the end, your kidneys would be damaged.