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Showing posts with label sick. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sick. Show all posts

Monday, March 11, 2019

Weight Gain, Starvation, & Gastroparesis

A friend of mine sent me a message about two months ago asking me questions about Gastroparesis because she was scared. The Gastroenterologist she saw told her a lot of different things that did not sound right to her, so she questioned it. I am very glad she did because he gave her a lot of misinformation that if she would have listened to, she might have died. The doctor she saw for her Gastroparesis told her she was too overweight for him to treat her.

He suggested that she go on a diet and starve herself a bit before he would consider treating her. She told him that she was starving and that her body was starving itself because she was unable to keep down food, which is why she went to the doctor. He told her that "starvation mode" was not a real thing. I was flabbergasted when she was relaying to me what he said. Additionally, she is also diabetic, so she cannot exactly "starve" herself (There is a lot of controversy regarding whether or not "starvation mode" is real. There are arguments on both sides but I will write about it, with arguments from both sides, and share sources, for you to make up your own minds).

I told her to see another doctor immediately because I know "starvation mode" is a real thing. My own doctor has told me that my body is starving itself from all of the vomiting and barely eating. I came home and did research immediately.

Some medical professionals see that patients are overweight and because they have this preconceived notion of what Gastroparesis is supposed to look like, they do not take the heavier Gastroparesis warriors seriously. I want to clarify that people can gain weight with Gastroparesis and they can also lose weight with it, too.

These are both complex issues with complex answers. I am glad my friend reached out to me to ask questions instead of following her doctor's advice to the letter, because I really do not know what would have happened to her if she had. I am so glad she was curious and smart enough to question the advice she was told, and went to get a second opinion. Sadly, this is not the first time I have heard this story. I have had a lot of people tell me that their doctors wanted them to lose weight first, before they would treat them, and/or some alternate versions of they did not need a feeding tube because they were too overweight for one. Let me make this VERY clear, your weight has nothing to do with malnutrition, vitamin deficiencies, or anything like that. I really hate it when medical professionals bring up weight, because it really sounds demeaning, patronizing, and I feel like I am being judged.


I made a survey to ask people with Gastroparesis whether or not they were treated differently because of their weight. I received sixty-three responses, which is amazing. They can be found HERE. To summarize the surveys I received, basically some doctors (not all), friends, and family members do not believe people have Gastroparesis if they are overweight. When you have Gastroparesis, you can gain weight or lose weight. Let's talk about weight gain first.**



“Eating too few calories, for too long of a period will cause your metabolism to slow down so much that it will prevent weight loss and even cause weight gain.”





Image Source: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/6f/21/6d/6f216d9733be5419e33ba262edde42fd.png





Weight gain can not only be attributed to starvation mode, where your metabolism slows, but could be caused by stress and anxiety in addition to your metabolism rate: http://www.emilysstomach.com/2017/01/mental-health-and-gastroparesis-part-1.html






Some of these sources refer to weight gain and starvation mode for dieting for healthy people, but it can be applied to Gastroparesis as well, since we do not have the luxury of eating to consider a diet.





Source: https://tinyurl.com/yapse9lm




Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage and eventually, death, according to the World Health Organization. The bloated stomach represents a form of malnutrition called kwashiorkor which is caused by insufficient protein despite a sufficient caloric intake.


My article called, "What Gastroparesis Does to the Body" that you can find HERE.

My article on Vitamin Deficiencies can be found HERE.





According to MedLine Plus,



"Kwashiorkor is a form of malnutrition that occurs when there is not enough protein in the diet.



Causes:

Kwashiorkor is most common in areas where there is:

Famine
Limited food supply
Low levels of education (when people do not understand how to eat a proper diet)


This disease is more common in very poor countries. It often occurs during a drought or other natural disaster, or during political unrest. These conditions are responsible for a lack of food, which leads to malnutrition.

Kwashiorkor is rare in children in the United States. There are only isolated cases. However, one government estimate suggests that as many as 50% of elderly people in nursing homes in the United States do not get enough protein in their diet.

When kwashiorkor does occur in the United States, it is most often a sign of child abuse and severe neglect.



Symptoms

Symptoms include:

Changes in skin pigment
Decreased muscle mass
Diarrhea
Failure to gain weight and grow
Fatigue
Hair changes (change in color or texture)
Increased and more severe infections due to damaged immune system
Irritability
Large belly that sticks out (protrudes)
Lethargy or apathy
Loss of muscle mass
Rash (dermatitis)
Shock (late stage)
Swelling (edema)



Exams and Tests

The physical exam may show an enlarged liver (hepatomegaly) and general swelling.

Tests may include:

Arterial blood gas
BUN
Complete blood count (CBC)
Creatinine clearance
Serum creatinine
Serum potassium
Total protein levels
Urinalysis



Treatment

Getting more calories and protein will correct kwashiorkor, if treatment is started early enough. However, children who have had this condition will never reach their full potential for height and growth.

Treatment depends on the severity of the condition. People who are in shock need treatment right away to restore blood volume and maintain blood pressure.

Calories are given first in the form of carbohydrates, simple sugars, and fats. Proteins are started after other sources of calories have already provided energy. Vitamin and mineral supplements are essential.

Since the person will have been without much food for a long period of time, eating can cause problems, especially if the calories are too high at first. Food must be reintroduced slowly.

Many malnourished children will develop intolerance to milk sugar (lactose intolerance). They will need to be given supplements with the enzyme lactase so that they can tolerate milk products.





Outlook (Prognosis)

Getting treatment early generally leads to good results. Treating kwashiorkor in its late stages will improve the child's general health. However, the child may be left with permanent physical and mental problems. If treatment is not given or comes too late, this condition is life threatening.




Possible Complications

Complications may include:

Coma
Permanent mental and physical disability
Shock





When to Contact a Medical Professional

Call your health care provider if your child has symptoms of kwashiorkor.




Prevention

To prevent kwashiorkor, make sure the diet has enough carbohydrates, fat (at least 10% of total calories), and protein (12% of total calories).




Alternative Names

Protein malnutrition; Protein-calorie malnutrition; Malignant malnutrition


Kwashiorkor is a condition resulting from inadequate protein intake. Early symptoms include fatigue, irritability, and lethargy. As protein deprivation continues, one sees growth failure, loss of muscle mass, generalized swelling (edema), and decreased immunity. A large, protuberant belly is common. The incidence of kwashiorkor in children in the United States is extremely small and it is typically found in countries where there is drought and famine.



Image Source: In the Article




References

Ashworth A. Nutrition, food security, and health. In: Kliegman RM, Stanton BF, St. Geme JW, Schor NF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 20th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2016:chap 46.

Kumar V, Abbas AK, Aster JC. Environmental and nutritional diseases. In: Kumar V, Abbas AK, Aster JC, eds. Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease. 9th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2015:chap 9.

Manary MJ, Trehan I. Protein-energy malnutrition. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 25th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2016:chap 215.
Review Date 2/19/2018

Updated by: Neil K. Kaneshiro, MD, MHA, Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team."







Image Source: https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/88935/area14mp/image-20150720-21056-kw51zj.png






Image Source: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjd-__GlfvgAhUlgK0KHcmTAIIQjRx6BAgBEAU&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftheconversation.com%2Fchemical-messengers-how-hormones-make-us-feel-hungry-and-full-35545&psig=AOvVaw3woiWmpXezgj7-o0y1ytU7&ust=1552430364356055






Image Source: https://www.healthline.com/health/low-blood-sugar-effects-on-body#1






I had no idea there was a hunger scale, like the pain scale, until I started doing research for this article.













According to Medical News Today,

"Malnutrition results from a poor diet or a lack of food. It happens when the intake of nutrients or energy is too high, too low, or poorly balanced. Undernutrition can lead to delayed growth or wasting, while a diet that provides too much food, but not necessarily balanced, leads to obesity. In many parts of the world, undernutrition results from a lack of food. In some cases, however, undernourishment may stem from a health condition, such as an eating disorder or a chronic illness that prevents the person from absorbing nutrients."



According to Fitness,

"Starvation is dangerous to deal with and leads to all sorts of problems, both mental and physical. Want to know what they are? Read this post and find out about the harmful and potentially dangerous side effects of starving yourself.

Starvation is a condition that is often accompanied by severe deficiency in your calorie intake. Starvation can be self-inflicted (hardcore dieters) or due to the presence of other conditions like anorexia or bulimia. Starvation can also lead to severe malnutrition and may permanently damage your internal organs.

Starvation isn’t something pleasant, and you should try and refrain from starving yourself, especially under the pretext of following a diet regime. To discourage you further, let’s look at some of the adverse effects of starvation in detail:


1. MALNUTRITION:

This is perhaps the most damaging effect of voluntary or forced starvation. Malnutrition is a terrible condition, and it affects most children in developing countries. Starvation usually means that you don’t eat much at all. This leads to many essential nutrients and vitamins being excluded from your diet. Malnutrition can lead to various mineral and nutrient deficiencies like Night blindness (vitamin A deficiency), Scurvy (Vitamin C deficiency) and even Anemia (Iron deficiency) (2).



2. DEHYDRATION:

The second most obvious result of starvation; just like a lack of food induces malnutrition, a lack of water can induce dehydration. This dehydration may in turn aggravate other problems and lead to cracked and exceedingly dry skin, along with other conditions like constipation, among others. Thus, it is important to remember to drink enough water, even if you are on a starvation diet. Starvation and dehydration depletes glycogen levels and disturbs electrolyte balance (3).



3. Decreased Resting Metabolic Rate:

Starvation can lead to a reduced resting metabolic rate. Your Basal metabolic rate or BMR is defined as the minimal rate of energy expenditure per time unit while you rest. Tests found that fasting prior to rest can lead to an increase in white adipose tissue (WAT) and decrease in flow to the brain. Other studies determine that starvation can induce a decrease in your basal metabolic rate.



4. Loss Of Monthly Menstrual Periods:

Starvation leads to many problems. One of these problems is it upsets how your periods are regulated. So, for those of you thinking about starvation diets, you might want to consider this before you begin. In some cases, if you are too underweight your body may simply cease to produce estrogen. A lack of fat can restrict your cells from converting cholesterol to extra estrogen. As starvation can lead to organ damage, body processes tend to slow down, which usually causes menstruation to stop (4).



5. Constipation:

Starvation can also induce constipation in many individuals. Studies on many anorexic individuals conclude that people who suffer from the disorder may suffer from severe starvation, which can lead to many disorders and requires the use of regular laxatives to be treated wholly. A case study on three severely anorexic women found that these women needed regular laxatives or enemas to help flush their colon. These women also ran a higher risk of suffering from rectal prolapse due to the overuse of laxatives (5).



6. Bone Loss:

A starved or starving individual may continue to lose weight at an alarming rate. Although the changes in your skin and musculature are quite obvious, but what about the changes in your bone structure! Did you know that starvation may lead to bone density loss? Well, usually when you consume a calorie-restricted diet, your bones are remodeled. The older bone breaks down and new bones form rapidly. However, your bone density reduces, which can lead to fragility (6).



7. Fatigue:

One of the most common side effects of starvation is fatigue. You have all heard about ‘eating to keep your strengths up,’ this idiom cannot ring any truer as eating a balanced diet helps provide energy for the body primarily, while helping keep diseases and infections at bay. Starvation upsets the balance of essential vitamins in your body and slows down physiological processes, which can also lead to fatigue and a feeling of faintness. Starvation is often associated with a feeling of lightheadedness (7).



8. High Blood Pressure:

Malnutrition and starvation can subject your body to many conditions, including high blood pressure. When you starve, essential nutrients like potassium and vitamin D aren’t consumed, which leads to a spike in blood pressure and many other deficiencies. All these factors ensure that starvation inevitably raises your blood pressure. In a study conducted on three groups of children, it was found that two groups: one malnourished and one recovering from malnourishment had significantly higher blood pressure readings than the children who weren’t malnourished at all.



9. Electrolyte Imbalance:

Starvation leads to a loss of nutrients, which results in the consumption of fewer electrolytes with each passing day. Heart-healthy Minerals like potassium, sodium, calcium and magnesium that promote proper heart function and heart health aren’t consumed when you don’t have enough food. Starving not only results in lesser nutrients, but also promotes electrolyte imbalance. Thus, remember to have mineral supplements if you are on a starvation diet.



10. Affects The Brain:

There have been many studies on how starvation can affect cognitive abilities and make you feel depressed. Try and recall how your friend snaps at you when she’s on a starvation diet. When we miss a meal, we often find ourselves dwelling on food and how it would feel to be properly fed.

You know that starvation can lead to many other physical symptoms like dehydration and fatigue that can impair your thinking abilities and also make you aggressive and jumpy. Starvation can also affect how you react to stress and can induce feelings of anxiety, irritability and even lead to chronic or clinical depression in some cases.

Now that you know how starvation can adversely affect your body, we hope that you will rethink about those starvation diets. They are just a quick fix and offer little long term benefit. Opt for a balanced regimen to lose weight."








Image Source: https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3a/31/c0/3a31c05ee329a6ee1ee8e7d0f7633b11.jpg







According to Health Line,



"Is 'Starvation Mode' Real or Imaginary? A Critical Look


Weight loss is generally seen as a positive thing. It can bring improved health, better looks and all sorts of benefits, both physical and mental. However, your brain doesn't necessarily see it that way. Your brain is more worried about keeping you from starving, making sure that you (and your genes) survive. When you lose a lot of weight, the body starts trying to conserve energy by reducing the amount of calories you burn. It also makes you feel hungrier, lazier and increases your cravings for food. This can cause you to stop losing weight, and may make you feel so miserable that you abandon your weight loss efforts and gain the weight back.

This phenomenon is often called 'starvation mode,' but is really just the brain's natural mechanism to protect you from starvation.


What Does 'Starvation Mode' Imply?

What people generally refer to as 'starvation mode' (and sometimes 'metabolic damage') is the body's natural response to long-term calorie restriction. It involves the body responding to reduced calorie intake by reducing calorie expenditure in an attempt to maintain energy balance and prevent starvation. This is a natural physiological response, and isn't really controversial. It is well accepted by scientists, and the technical term for it is 'adaptive thermogenesis.' I will use the term starvation mode in this article, although it really is a misnomer because true starvation is something that is almost completely irrelevant to most weight loss discussions. Starvation mode was a useful physiological response back in the day, but does more harm than good in the modern food environment where obesity runs rampant.


Calories In, Calories Out

Obesity is a disorder of excess energy accumulation. The body puts energy (calories) into its fat tissues, storing it for later use. If more calories enter the fat tissue than leave it, we gain fat. If more calories leave the fat tissue than enter it, we lose fat. This is fact. Pretty much all weight loss diets cause a reduction in calorie intake. Some by controlling calories directly (counting calories, weighing portions, etc), others by reducing appetite so that people eat fewer calories automatically. When this happens, calories leaving the fat tissue (calories out) become greater than the calories entering it (calories in). So we lose fat. However, the body doesn't see this in the same way as you do. In many cases, it sees this as the beginning of starvation. So the body fights back, doing everything it can to make you stop losing.

The body and brain can respond by making you hungrier (so you eat more, increasing calories in), but what is most relevant to this discussion here is what happens to the amount of calories you burn (calories out). Starvation mode implies that your body reduces calories out in an attempt to restore energy balance and stop you from losing any more weight, even in the face of continued calorie restriction. This phenomenon is very real, but whether this response is so powerful that it can prevent you from losing weight, or even start gaining despite continued calorie restriction, is not as clear.


What people refer to as 'starvation mode' is the body's natural response to long-term calorie restriction. It involves a reduction in the amount of calories your body burns, which can slow down weight loss. The amount of calories you burn can change.


The amount of calories you burn in a day can be roughly split into 4 parts:

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): The amount of calories your body uses to maintain vital functions, such as breathing, heart rate and brain function.

Thermic Effect of Food (TEF): The calories burned while digesting a meal. Usually about 10% of calorie intake.

Thermic Effect of Exercise (TEE): Calories burned during physical activity, such as exercise.

Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT): Calories burned fidgeting, changing posture, etc. This is usually subconscious.

It involves a reduction in movement (both conscious and subconscious), and a major change in the function of the nervous system and various hormones.


There are several ways that the body burns calories. All of them can go down when you restrict calories for a long time. Studies Show That Calorie Restriction Can Reduce 'Calories Out.' Studies clearly show that weight loss reduces the amount of calories you burn. According to a large review study, this amounts to 5.8 calories per day, for each pound lost, or 12.8 calories per kilogram. What this means, is that if you were to lose 50 pounds, or 22.7 kilograms, your body would end up burning 290.5 fewer calories per day. The reduction in calorie expenditure can be much greater than what is predicted by changes in weight. For example, some studies show that losing and maintaining 10% of body weight can reduce calories burned by 15-25%. This is one of the reasons weight loss tends to slow down over time, and why it is so difficult to maintain a reduced weight. You may need to eat fewer calories for life! Keep in mind that it is possible that this metabolic 'slowdown' is even greater in some groups that have a hard time losing weight, such as postmenopausal women.



Muscle Mass Tends to Go Down

Another side effect of losing weight, is that muscle mass tends to go down. As you may know, muscle is metabolically active, and burns calories around the clock. However, the reduction in calorie expenditure is actually greater than can be explained by a reduction in muscle mass alone. The body becomes more efficient at doing work, so less energy than before is required to do the same amount of work. So calorie restriction makes you expend fewer calories for the physical activity (whether deliberate or subconscious) that you perform.

Weight loss and reduced calorie intake can lead to reduced burning of calories. On average, this amounts to about 5.8 calories per pound of lost body weight.



How to Avoid the Metabolic Slowdown

Keep in mind that your metabolism slowing down is simply a natural response to reduced calorie intake. Although some reduction in calorie burning may be inevitable, there are a number of things you can do to mitigate the effect. The single most effective thing you can do is resistance exercise.


Starvation mode is real, but it's not as powerful as some people think. It can make weight loss slow down over time, but it won't cause someone to gain weight despite restricting calories. It's also not an 'on and off' phenomenon, like some people seem to think. It's an entire spectrum of the body adapting to either increased or decreased calorie intake. Starvation mode is actually a terribly inaccurate term. Something like 'metabolic adaptation' or 'metabolic slowdown' would be much more appropriate. This is simply the body's natural physiological response to reduced calorie intake. Without it, humans would have become extinct thousands of years ago. Unfortunately, this protective response can cause more harm than good where overfeeding is a much, much greater threat to human health than starvation."


Let's talk more about starvation mode. I want to quote a couple of different sources, and they may say similar things, but I want to look at this closely since my friend's doctor said it wasn't a real thing or problem. I just do not believe that. My doctor, when I was in high school (when I first started vomiting and getting sick, but didn't know what was wrong) told me that my body was starving itself. He had to explain to me what that meant and at that time, I was sixteen and ninety pounds (I am 5'4"). He told me I had to supplement what I ate with Ensure, so I had to eat an entire meal and drink Ensure on top of it. I actually really started gaining weight in 2009, when I fell down a mountain and broke both of my knees. But, I digress, because that isn't the point.

The point is, I had a doctor confirm to me, personally, that starvation mode is VERY real and people's bodies handle it in different ways. My body was feeding off of itself, consuming my muscle mass and things like that. Starvation is VERY real and VERY dangerous. It is SO dangerous for medical professionals to tell anyone that.

You have to be your own advocate and research things that you may not understand, that you may have questions about, and/or even doubts about.

I do not want to disparage doctors in any way, but they do not know everything. They do their utter best to rule things out and to help you as much as they are able to, and there are REALLY great doctors out there who care, but there are also doctors who do not even know about Gastroparesis or the effects it can have on someone (and given as much knowledge as they have to retain, I do not fault them for this). I do not want to alienate any medical professionals out there, as I respect the job that you do. This article is mainly to help misunderstandings and to educate the medical professionals, hopefully, that told my diabetic friend with Gastroparesis, to lose some weight before he would treat her for Gastroparesis, and that 'starvation mode' did not exist. Well, I'm going to research it and prove it does.






Image Source: https://anabolicminds.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=72947&d=1358175074








According to InBodyUSA,

"Research indicates people who used starvation diets for weight loss, eating 50% of their energy needs for three weeks, did decrease their body weight overall. However, they also reduced their lean muscle mass by 5%. If the state of starvation is maintained chronically, lean muscle mass and organ size are decreased by 20%.

Likewise, a study on mice found lean mass and lean muscle mass were sacrificed during starvation; however, body fat stores were relatively the same in mice on a control diet and obese mice on starvation diets.

Weight loss via starvation causes individuals to lose significant amounts of lean muscle mass and Lean Body Mass, which encompasses water, bones, organs, etc. Reducing the mass of your bones is problematic, as that decreases bone density and can make you more prone to injury. Conversely, increasing Lean Body Mass increases bone strength and density, a common concern for many Americans as they age.

One study using human participants indicated dropping significant amounts of calories from the diet lead to significant weight loss and decreased lean muscle mass. However, participants also gained back nearly all of the fat they lost, within 8 years.

This prompts the discussion and understanding of an important topic- metabolism. More so, chronic starvation leads to changes in metabolism. Metabolism and resting metabolic rate are directly linked to Lean Body Mass. A person with greater body mass will require more energy to function day to day, thus will have a larger basal metabolic rate (BMR). As weight decreases, so does BMR.

This means that there’s a certain number of calories necessary to maintain your lean mass. If you go below this number, your body will be forced to break down these muscle stores in order to create energy.

Starvation diets have far-reaching negative effects on the body. Starving to lose weight changes the metabolism, reduces lean muscle, reduces bone density, and decreases strength."











Image Source: https://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2017/01/170126081628_1_540x360.jpg




There is an interesting book about Starvation Mode by Leigh Peele (that is in ebook form, too). This is her research and take on Starvation Mode and the Effects and Symptoms,

"Different Effects and Symptoms of Starvation Mode

Starvation happens when the body is deprived of the essential nutrients it requires for proper function and survival. When the body does not receive these nutrients that come from food and liquids, side effects occur. One of the effects of starve mode is weight loss and many people use this method to lose unwanted weight. This is often done as an act of desperation because of stubborn weight that they are unable to lose with all other weight loss techniques they have tried in the past. Going on starvation mode is not recommended to be done often since it can have irreversible effects that could eventually lead to death.

On starvation mode, the body feeds itself with what is inside it. Because you take in only a few calories, you lose weight. It should, however, be noted that when few calories enter the body, the metabolism also slows down. Because the metabolism burns calories, it burns only a few calories once it slows down. The moment you start consuming food regularly, the weight will come back. This is because the body begins to comprehend that it is starving and so it shuts down your weight loss efforts for it to survive.

Some of the bad effects of starvation mode include failed diets and other mental and physical ailments. These results are brought about by the malnourishment and depression. Eventually you will gain the weight that you lost back due to your coping mechanisms when you are depressed.

Starvation obviously makes you lose weight. The body does not have any sustenance inside it. You can lose up to two pounds a day with starvation. While it may initially sound good, the effects of such drastic weight loss might result in a medical emergency. Your body and your organs might not be able to cope with not having sustenance for days at length.

Starvation can cause dehydration because the body lacks fluid it needs. It then uses water and fluids already stored in your body. The first organ to be affected is the kidneys and they shall fail and eventually stop working once your urine output stops. Your skin will lose rigidity and turgor and shall become extremely dry and stiff. When you become dehydrated, your heart rhythms become irregular and this shall lead to heart diseases.

Another one of the effects of starvation mode is electrolyte imbalance. Because there is loss of fluids and nutrients, there is no fuel available for the body to work properly. Electrolytes make the heart, nerve impulse and muscle impulse function properly. They also make oxygen flow steadily in the body. If the flow is disrupted severely, you may slip into a coma. Blood sugar levels quickly drop because of the absence of glucose even if the pancreas produces just a small amount of insulin.

During the ultimate stage of starvation, severe muscle atrophy happens. The muscle crumbles and lessens because the body feeds from itself. It uses its muscle mass so as to give energy to the bloodstream so that the organs will not shut down. Muscle spasms and twitches happen when the potassium level becomes dangerously low. Extreme weakness and paralysis may also happen. When the muscles break down, the nerve cells deteriorate, especially those in your spinal cord area which regulates movement. If the muscles are weak and do not function, you may not move freely at all.

Low blood pressure or hypotension is also a side effect of starvation mode. Aside from such bouts, the temperature of the body also drops. When the blood pressure becomes so low, shock may happen and this is a very dangerous condition because the body shots down just to survive. If hypotension is left untreated, death or coma will happen."










Gastroparesis can effect everyone differently. Everyone's bodies are different and so Gastroparesis is harder to treat because it varies so widely from person to person. I wrote about this in detail, and if you would like to read that article, you can find it here: http://www.emilysstomach.com/2018/04/gastroparesis-different-ways-it-effects.html

For the many different causes of Gastroparesis and the available treatment options, you can read here: http://www.emilysstomach.com/2018/10/the-many-causes-of-gastroparesis.html

I also do not want anyone to think that Gastroparesis is an eating disorder. It is not. It can be caused by an eating disorder, but Gastroparesis, itself, is a chronic, invisible illness. For specifics on the differences between the two, please read this article: http://www.emilysstomach.com/2015/04/gastroparesis-vs-eating-disorders.html


More sources can be found at:

NDTV.

SIGN OF THE TIMES.

LIVESTRONG.COM. "A lack of food can cause the body to go into starvation mode over time. Starvation mode is a metabolic response to the body being deprived of food, which may occur during periods of famine or economic depression, when using a fad diet, or when suffering from anorexia nervosa. A variety of specific signs and symptoms affect those whose body has gone into starvation mode."










SOURCE:KHAN ACADEMY.








SOURCE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZNu5bsCyEc



THE CONVERSATION.







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Monday, January 28, 2019

Dehydration is a Medical Emergency

I finally got home yesterday after being hospitalized for a couple of days. I began to get really ill last week and I could not stop vomiting. Finally, early Tuesday evening, the room started going black and I was going to pass out right away if I did not sit down. The room was spinning, even while I was sitting down. I thought maybe I was hypoglycemic because I experience the same symptoms when my blood sugar gets low and I had been unable to keep down anything for five days, including water. I went downstairs to my kitchen to eat a banana (at my husband's suggestion to coat my stomach). I grabbed the banana and then the room started going black again. I ran to try to make it to the kitchen chair and my knees gave out before I could reach it. I fell on my knees and landed on the stone kitchen floor with my jaw. To top it all off, I landed on the banana. It was like something out of a Monty Python movie. I passed out for a bit but when I came to, I managed to drag myself to my laptop (my phone did not charge because of a faulty cable - go figure) and called my husband. He took me to the hospital, mostly to make sure I did not fracture anything since I fell hard.




When we got there, my husband got me a wheelchair because every time I stood up, my vision started going black. Then, I went back to the triage nurse who took my blood pressure. She could not believe what she was seeing and took it twice more. My blood pressure was 74/41 (normal blood pressure is 120/80). They called me back right away and put me into a room. The lab tech came in and took seven vials of blood from my foot because I had no more veins. I kept passing in and out of consciousness. I came to as the doctor was talking to my husband. She told me that I was in acute renal failure (my kidneys were failing), my blood pressure was dangerously low, and that my potassium was dangerously low, so they were going to admit me. I was so scared. Usually when I go to the Emergency Room, they treat me like a drug addict. They may give me one bag of fluids, if I'm lucky, and then send me home. However, none of the Emergency Room doctors or staff treated me that way in the slightest.





Source: On Image





I was admitted onto the Internal Medicine floor and given medication through an IV to try and get the nausea and vomiting under control, and to get my kidneys to kick back in. Additionally, I received four IV bags of potassium and my potassium was STILL low! So, they just kept giving me more. I was in the hospital for three days. I finally got to go home Friday night and I'm so glad because I really wanted some much needed sleep and rest. It is so hard to rest in a hospital with people coming in to check your vitals, draw blood, give medications, and/or bring food in. I talk more about this in my video I recorded below, but it honestly just felt like a normal Gastroparesis Attack to me, and I just thought I was hypoglycemic. That wasn't the case at all, and it was a serious emergency. I hate to think of what might have happened if I had not gone. I could have died and I am still processing that. I talk about that more below.




Dehydration is VERY serious.






Source: Google Image







My personal Story From This Week



I do not know if a lot of places have these yet, but Atlanta has Hydration Stations. According to their website,

"Walk into Atlanta's Hydration Station on a Sunday morning and you'll find a dozen people in dimly lit rooms lying on recliner chairs with needles stuck in their arms.

Most of them are hungover from heavy drinking the night before. The needles are pumping sterile saltwater and a cocktail of vitamins and anti-nausea drugs into their veins.

The treatment costs upwards of $29 and it has become so popular in Atlanta that Hydration Station is opening a second location down the road just nine months after launching the first, according to CEO Keith McDermott.

McDermott describes the concept as a cross between a spa and a doctor's office. It attracts a mix of athletes and hungover partiers, depending on the time of week. On the weekends, about 75% of Hydration Station's clientele is hungover, McDermott said.

He wants the business to eventually cater more toward athletes, but he's not discouraging the traffic from partiers. Hydration Station is sponsoring a pub crawl this weekend and a New Year's Eve ball on Dec. 31.

Customers rave about the services on Yelp and Facebook and a number of them have been posting photos of themselves on social media hooked up to the IVs.

'Love this place!' someone wrote in a Yelp review on Oct. 21. 'Did a little bit too much drinking the night before and decided to come here... After I left here I felt instantly better — didn't even need so much as a nap throughout the day. I got the water IV and [vitamin] B12.'

Another reviewer wrote: 'After a long party weekend, Hydration Station hit the spot. I felt horrible until I got my IV. It was quick and easy.'

Luke Davis, an athlete and owner of the gym CrossFit Tucker in Tucker, Ga., told Business Insider that he has visited Hydration Station about 10 times since it opened 'and would be there a lot more if I didn't have such a crazy schedule.'

'It really helps with recovery after a really strenuous workout,' he said. 'We can recover so much faster and can train again the next day.'

Davis said he usually gets the $99 'Niagra Falls' package for his training purposes, even though it's advertised for people in 'deathbed territory' on the Hydration Station's website.

The package includes up to two liters of hydration (or two IV bags), a cocktail of Zofran (anti-nausea), Toradol (anti-inflammatory) and Pepcid (anti-heartburn), 30 minutes of oxygen, vitamin B12, and oral antioxidant and multi-vitamins to go.

Davis said he omits the anti-nausea medicine from his treatment because that's for people who are ill or have hangovers.

Dr. Robert Shesser, chairman of George Washington University's Department of Emergency Medicine, told Business Insider that the 'Niagra' is a perfectly safe concoction of drugs for someone with symptoms of a hangover or anyone suffering from dehydration after an athletic event.

'All of these medication are used quite frequently and their safety profile is excellent,' Shesser said. Hydrating someone who is suffering from over-intoxication is also a routine procedure, even though the science behind it 'isn't necessarily the strongest,' he said.

'The only scientific basis [for the treatment] is that alcohol is a diuretic so people who drink will have an increase in urinary output and theoretically become dehydrated,' he explained. 'But unless you are drinking shots of scotch in the middle of the desert,' you probably won't lose enough water to need an IV, he said.

'But if it makes people feel better, then great,' he added.

The most popular package at Hydration Station is the $29 'Baptism,' which includes one IV bag and 15 minutes of oxygen, according to McDermott. One IV bag is equivalent to drinking more than two gallons of water, he said.

The treatments, which typically last up to 45 minutes, are administered by paramedics who work for the Hydration Station part-time. The company employs about eight to 10 paramedics on a rotating basis at the Buckhead location.

To pass the time, customers have a choice of playing with Hydration Station's assortment of tablets or watching TV.






'People have a fear of needles and apprehension when coming in, especially if they haven't done it before, so we try and make them as relaxed as possible,' McDermott said.



It Started With A Wedding Hangover

Before launching Hydration Station, McDermott was the vice president of marketing and business development for Biomass Gas & Electric (BG&E). He came up with the idea for the Hydration Station several years ago after attending a wedding where many of the guests, including himself, had overindulged on the night of the rehearsal dinner.

'We were playing golf the next day and the groom told me that they had a nurse who was giving IVs to people to help them get over their hangovers,' McDermott said. 'It felt super' and guests were raving about it, he said.

Coincidentally, McDermott had experienced his first IV treatment 10 days earlier when he felt ill after several weeks of traveling for work.

After the wedding-day IV, it dawned on McDermott that the service could work as a business. A Google search told him that there's a similar service in Las Vegas that operates out of a bus. There's also one in Chicago called IVMe Hydration Clinic.

But there wasn't anything like it in Atlanta, aside from hospitals.

McDermott hired Dr. Thomas Roepke, a board-certified physician and friend of his, as medical director and opened the Hydration Station in Atlanta's Buckhead neighborhood in March. Roepke developed the company's range of treatments based on his own research and nearly 20 years of treating patients, according to the company website.

When designing the office, McDermott said he assumed people would prefer private rooms, but 'it has become the exact opposite.'


'People come in, they want to share stories about the last marathon they were in, or if they are here for a little over-indulgence, they like to talk about their night out,' he said.

Some people even make a date out of it, he added.

'They meet, go out on dates and stuff on Saturdays and then they come in Sunday morning,' he said. 'It's become a social thing.'

He describes the new office, which is being built five miles down the road in Atlanta's Brookhaven neighborhood, as 'sleek and spa-like.'

'It's going to be a cross between the W Hotel and an Apple store,' McDermott said."







Source: Flickr



According to Life Signs Blog,

"How Much Water Do You Need to Drink Every Day?

Did you know that you’re mostly made of water? If you’re an adult female, you’re about 55% water. Men are about 60% because they typically have more lean tissue (which contains more water) and women have more fatty tissue (which contains less water). Younger people have more (babies are born at about 78%) and older folks have less (about 50%).

Approximate percentages of water in various body parts:

Blood 92%
Lungs 83%
Muscles and kidneys 79%
Heart and brain 73%
Skin 64%
Bones 31%

Yes, even your bones are nearly one-third H2O. And yet two-thirds of us — nearly 70% — aren’t drinking enough water to keep our bodies functioning properly. It doesn’t take much to throw off the balance and become dehydrated. Don’t let something as simple as drinking enough water send you to the ER — it’s really not a story you’ll look forward to telling around the water cooler.





Source: On Image and Google Images





When does dehydration occur?

At just 1% dehydration, or when you’ve lost 1% of your body’s water, mental performance and physical coordination start to become impaired — and you’re not even thirsty yet


At 2-3% dehydration, you’ll feel thirsty and possibly some of these other symptoms:

Fatigue, lethargy, fuzzy thinking
Irritability
Dizziness
Headache
Dry mouth and skin
Muscle cramps
Rapid pulse (100 beats/minute or higher)
Fever and chills




Source: Google Images





Bryan Thibodeau, MD, ER medical director at Medical City Las Colinas, cautions parents to look for these signs of dehydration in infants and babies:

Sunken fontanelle (soft spot on the head)
Limp/inactive
Dry lips/tongue/mouth
Crying without tears
Pale or mottled skin


Dehydration can be very dangerous, especially for infants, children and older people. If someone you know shows signs of dehydration, seek immediate emergency medical treatment.




Source:https://articles.mercola.com/dehydration-symptoms.aspx




Why Our Bodies Need Water

Besides being the primary building block for all cells, water is vital to the health of every system in our bodies.

Among other important functions, water:

Regulates body temperature
Transports nutrients and waste materials
Aids digestion
Cushions the brain and spinal cord
Keeps eyes and mouths moist
Lubricates joints
Can prevent heartburn, constipation and kidney stones
Manages heartbeat, blood pressure and electrolyte (sodium) balance


Did you know water can also help prevent heart attacks? A study at Loma Linda University found that dehydration thickens the blood, making it harder for the heart to pump and increasing the risk of blood clots. Study participants who drank just 40 ounces of water a day cut their risk for heart attacks by 54% for men and 41% for women.








How Much Water is Enough?

The old advice to drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day is just that — a good starting point but outdated because it was never really accurate.


According to the Cleveland Clinic, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all recommendation for daily water intake. How much you need depends on:

How much you weigh (a larger person needs more water)
Your activity level
Your metabolism
Your geographic location (people who live in hot, dry climates need more water)
The weather
Your diet (how much water are you getting from the foods you eat?)
Your health (fever, vomiting, diarrhea and some medications and conditions can increase your water needs)


The Mayo Clinic suggests that if you drink enough water so that you’re rarely thirsty and your urine is colorless or light yellow, you’re probably doing fine. If you’re always thirsty and your urine is dark yellow with a strong odor, you need to get chugging. If you just don’t like water, try getting it in soups, smoothies and high-water content fruits and vegetables."




Source: Google Images






According to Dr. Mercola,

"Dehydration happens when you’ve lost too much water in your body without replacing it, which prevents your body to perform its normal functions

Infants and children are especially prone to dehydration since their bodies are composed of 70 percent and 65 percent water, respectively

Beverage companies claim that sports drink will help replenish the electrolytes in your body during exercise or outdoor activities, but the truth is the ingredients of your favorite sports drinks will not hydrate and benefit you, and may even be detrimental to your health

When you nourish your body with structured water, you are restoring your body to a balanced and whole state
By Dr. Mercola

Dehydration is not a simple health issue. Anyone can run out of liquids in their body due to various reasons, so it is important that you always hydrate yourself with water. Read on to learn more about symptoms of dehydration and how to prevent it.

What Is Dehydration?
Water makes up at least two-thirds of the human body. It plays a large part in your normal functions, such as lubricating your joints and eyes, keeping your skin healthy by eliminating toxins, and facilitating proper digestion. Once the water in your body is reduced, it needs to be replaced because an imbalance between the salts and sugar in your body can affect the way you will perform.1

If your body has lost one to two percent of its entire water content, you will feel thirsty, a sign that you need to replenish the lost liquids.

Dehydration happens when you've lost too much water in your body without replacing it, preventing your body to perform its normal functions. Mild dehydration can easily be treated but if it reaches extreme levels, it can be life-threatening and will require immediate medical attention.





Signs and Symptoms of Dehydration

Aside from the common symptoms like intense thirst or sweating too much, here are some of the mild and severe symptoms of dehydration:2

Mild to Moderate Dehydration
Severe Dehydration
Dry, sticky mouth Extreme thirst
Sleepiness or tiredness Irritability and confusion
Dry skin Sunken eyes
Headache Dry skin that doesn't bounce back when you pinch it
Constipation Low blood pressure
Dizziness or lightheadedness Rapid heartbeat
Few or no tears when crying Rapid breathing
Minimal urine No tears when crying
Dry, cool skin3 Fever
Muscle cramps Little or no urination, and any urine color that is darker than usual




Source: On Images and Google Images




In serious cases, delirium or unconsciousness.

Infants are more vulnerable to dehydration, that's why immediate attention must be given to them especially if you see these symptoms:

Sunken soft spot (fontanelle) on their head
Few or no tears when they cry
Dry mouth
Few wet diapers
Drowsiness
Fast breathing
Chronic dehydration may affect your organs and lead to kidney stones, cholesterol problems, constipation, and liver, joint, and muscle damage.

Whether it is mild, moderate, or severe dehydration, the lost liquids in your body must be immediately replaced. If you start to develop severe diarrhea with or without vomiting, fever, moderate diarrhea for 24 hours, bloody stool, or you can't drink any liquids, you must get professional treatment as soon as possible.




Source: On Image




What Causes Dehydration?

There are various reasons for dehydration like intense physical activity, which makes you lose so much water – fat and calories are counted as well – so proper hydration is necessary. Other causes of dehydration include:


Diarrhea. It prevents your intestinal tract from absorbing water from the foods that you eat, which makes it the most common cause of dehydration.
Vomiting. Common causes include foodborne illnesses, nausea, and alcohol poisoning.
Sweating. Vigorous sweating may happen due to various reasons like fever and engaging in intense physical activity. Profuse sweating can also occur when you are working in a hot condition.5
Diabetes. Aside from having high blood sugar levels, some medications for diabetes like diuretics may cause diabetics to frequently urinate.
Frequent urination. It can be cause by alcohol and certain drugs like antihistamines, blood pressure medications, and antipsychotics.





Source: HERE





Who Is at Risk of Dehydration?

While everyone is prone to dehydration, there are people who are at a high risk for it like those who engage in mountain climbing. It is especially hard for hikers to stay hydrated because the pressure in high altitude places makes them lose more sweat and breathe harder. The increased gas exchange causes your body to lose more water vapor.6

Athletes, particularly those who are involved in marathons, triathlons, and cycling tournaments, are also predisposed to dehydration. The longer they exercise, the more they lose water in their bodies.

One study even revealed that dehydration can affect basketball players' performance. The study focused on 17 males ranging from 17-28 years old, and determined their performance based on different dehydration levels of up to 4 percent. The result showed that when there's an increase in dehydration, skill performance decreases.

Infants and children are especially prone to dehydration since their bodies are composed of 70 percent and 65 percent water, respectively. Since their bodies are more vulnerable to water depletion, their need for water is greater than adults.

Elderly people are also at risk for dehydration since the thirst mechanism weakens as a person grows older. According to BBC News,8 research revealed that one in five seniors is not getting enough water every day, as aging causes people to lose their sense of thirst mainly because of minimal social contact or forgetfulness. Those with dementia were found to have a six-fold increased risk for dehydration.

Ill-stricken people, like those who are inflicted with kidney disease, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, and adrenal gland disorders, are also more prone to dehydration. Alcoholics may also be susceptible to this condition.





Source: HERE






How to Prevent Dehydration

Since dehydration can be a life-threatening condition, it is important that you replenish your body with water immediately after you've lost so much. Water plays such an immense role in your bodily functions, making it an essential part of your everyday life.

Always bring a bottle of water with you during exercise or any physical activity, especially when the temperature's too hot. One good rule of thumb to prevent dehydration is to drink as much water until your urine turns light yellow. Dark urine means that your kidney is retaining liquids in order for your body to perform its normal functions.

It is especially important to pay attention to people who are sick with fever, vomiting, or diarrhea, so they may not become dehydrated. They should be given lots of water to replace the liquids that they've lost.




Source: HERE





Drinking Sports Drinks Will Not Keep You Hydrated

Sports drink is one of the highly commercialized beverages today – from its TV advertisements to its popular athlete endorsers – as mainstream media makes it look like drinking it will keep you healthy and well-hydrated. Beverage companies advertise that sports drink will help replenish the electrolytes in your body during exercise or outdoor activities, but the truth is the ingredients of your favorite sports drinks will not hydrate and benefit you, and may even be detrimental to your health.

A typical sports drink contains high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and artificial sweeteners. It has two-thirds of the sugar content of soda, and is 30 times more erosive to your teeth than water. High-fructose corn syrup could cause negative health impacts like preventing the natural production of your body's human growth hormone (HGH). It also contributes to almost all chronic diseases like diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.





Source: HERE





Aside from sports drinks, there are also other sweetened beverages that you don't benefit much from, like sodas. These are also equally unhealthy for your health, as just a 20-ounce bottle of cola gives you 16 teaspoons of sugar through high-fructose corn syrup. Diet soda makes no difference either because a study revealed that diet soda drinkers have a 70 percent increase in waist size than those non-diet soda drinkers in a 10-year period.9

Commercial fruit juices are another sweetened drink that you must avoid because they do not have any hydrating properties and are actually loaded with sugar. For example, Minute Maid's 15.2 ounce bottle actually contains 49 grams of sugar.

What's more, most processed fruit juices are made with little resemblance of what an actual fresh fruit juice would be. Commercial fruit juices are pasteurized and their oxygen is removed to preserve them for a long time, making the juices less nutrient-dense. Store-bought fruit juices with an expiration date of 60 days or more is a sign that it is heavily processed, so I encourage you to boycott these kinds of beverages.




Source:HERE






Choose to Drink Living Water

I advise you to avoid drinking tap water at all costs as it contains fluoride, heavy metals, and disinfection byproducts that may have ill effects on your health. Install a water filter in your home to ensure that these harmful contaminants are strained.

If you want the best water for you and your family, I suggest drinking structured or "living" water, such as deep spring water. According to Dr. Gerald Pollack, one of the world's leading research scientists about the physics of water, structured water or EZ "exclusion zone" water is the same type of water found in your cells. It has a negative charge, and works just like a battery by holding and delivering energy.

Since distilled water is too acidic and alkaline water is too alkaline, only structured water contains the ideal PH range of 6.5 to 7.5. That's why I truly want you to nourish your body with structured water, as it can restore your body to a balanced and whole state.

I personally drink vortexed water since I became a fan of Viktor Schauberger, who did so much work about vortexing hundred years ago. By creating a vortex in your glass of water, you are putting much energy in it and increasing EZ as well.

Ideal EZ water can be found in glacial melt but since it is practically inaccessible for almost everyone, natural deep spring water is a good source. Just bring glass jugs and avoid plastic bottles since they contain bisphenol A, bisphenol B, and phthalates, which are harmful to your health.





Source: HERE





Other Natural Thirst-Quenchers for Preventing Dehydration

If you want to drink something flavorful than water, you can opt for raw, organic green juice made from fresh vegetables. However, I recommend refraining from drinking juice with too many fruits as it will have high amounts of sugar and calories. Go for a green juice recipe that combines one or two fruits and larger amounts of greens like spinach, celery, or kale. That way, you can minimize your sugar intake and still get all the nutrients from the fruits and vegetables in their purest forms.

I advise keeping your fructose consumption below 25 grams per day. If you have type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, or heart disease, it is wise if you will minimize your total fructose to 15 grams daily.

Coconut water also serves as a great replacement for commercially sold sports drinks. It provides optimal health benefits due to its anti-inflammatory, amino acids, and antioxidants. A word of caution: coconut water also contains sugar, so you should drink it in moderation. Drink it preferably after a cardio workout, when you need to replace minerals and fluids.

The Key to Avoiding Dehydration: Listen to Your Body
No one can determine if you have dehydration better than yourself. If you feel that you are already thirsty or sweating profusely, you have to replenish your body with water immediately. Do not wait for severe symptoms to show before you take action, since this can be life threatening.

Everyone is practically at risk for dehydration, even without any physical activity, so it is important to always keep a bottle of filtered water to always keep you hydrated. Remember that a healthy person urinates seven to eight times each day, so if you're not urinating frequently it means that you're not drinking enough water.

Remember to always listen to your body. Once you feel that urge to drink, opt for structured or filtered water rather than artificially sweetened beverages, which can have dire effects on your health. Nothing feels more refreshing than cold water to replace the liquids that you've lost."




Source: HERE




According to The Stomach Flu Edition, here is a recipe on how to make homemade Pedialyte and foods that have hydration:


Source: HERE


Source:HERE




Until I was doing research on this, I had no idea that dehydration could cause back pain,





According to Science Alert,

"Here's What Happens to Your Body When You're Dehydrated
TOBY MüNDEL, THE CONVERSATION
5 FEB 2016

This article was written by Toby Mündel from Massey University, and was originally published by The Conversation.

Water is essential for human life. It accounts for for 50-70 percent of our body weight and is crucial for most bodily functions. Any deficit in normal body water – through dehydration, sickness, exercise or heat stress – can make us feel rotten. First we feel thirsty and fatigued, and may develop a mild headache. This eventually gives way to grumpiness, and mental and physical decline.

We continually lose water via our breath, urine, faeces and skin. Most healthy people regulate their body’s water level remarkably well via eating and drinking, and are guided by appetite and thirst. But this is more difficult for infants, the sick, the elderly, athletes, and those with strenuous physical occupations, especially in the heat.
What happens when you dehydrate?

By the time you feel thirsty your body is already dehydrated; our thirst mechanism lags behind our actual level of hydration.

Research shows that as little as 1 percent dehydration negatively affects your mood, attention, memory and motor coordination. Data in humans is lacking and contradictory, but it appears that brain tissue fluid decreases with dehydration, thus reducing brain volume and temporarily affecting cell function.

As you 'lose' body water without replacing it, your blood becomes more concentrated and, at a point, this triggers your kidneys to retain water. The result: you urinate less.

The thicker and more concentrated your blood becomes, the harder it is for your cardiovascular system to compensate by increasing heart rate to maintain blood pressure. When your dehydrated body is 'pushed' – such as when exercising or faced with heat stress – the risk of exhaustion or collapse increases. This can cause you to faint, for instance, when you stand up too quickly.

Less water also hampers the body’s attempts at regulating temperature, which can cause hyperthermia (a body temperature greatly above normal). At a cellular level, 'shrinkage' occurs as water is effectively borrowed to maintain other stores, such as the blood. The brain senses this and triggers an increased sensation of thirst.




How much should I drink?

Normal water needs range drastically due to a number of factors, such as body composition, metabolism, diet, climate and clothing.

Surprisingly, the first official recommendation about water intake was made as recently as 2004. According to the Institute of Medicine, the adequate water intake for adult men and women is 3.7 and 2.7 litres per day, respectively.

Around 80 percent of total daily water should be obtained from any beverage (including water, caffeinated drinks and alcohol!) and the remaining 20 percent from food.

But of course, this is just a rough guide. Here’s how to monitor your own hydration:

Track your body weight and stay within 1 percent of your normal baseline. You can work out your baseline by averaging your weight (just out of bed, before breakfast) on three consecutive mornings.

Monitor your urine. You should be urinating regularly (more than three to four times per day) and it should be a pale straw or light yellow colour without strong odour. If less frequent, darker colour or too pungent, then drink more fluids.

Be conscious about drinking enough fluids. Your fluid consumption should prevent the perception of thirst.

Toby Mündel, Senior Lecturer, School of Sport and Exercise, Massey University."




Source:HERE





According to The Encyclopedia Britannica,

"The symptoms of dehydration depend in part on the cause and in part on whether there is associated salt deprivation as well. When loss of water is disproportionately greater than loss of electrolytes (salt), the osmotic pressure of the extracellular fluids becomes higher than in the cells. Since water passes from a region of lower to a region of higher osmotic pressure, water flows out of the cells into the extracellular fluid, tending to lower its osmotic pressure and increase its volume toward normal. As a result of the flow of water out of the cells, they become dehydrated. This results in the thirst that always accompanies “pure” water depletion.

In those diseases in which there is loss of salt in excess of water loss, the decreased concentration of sodium in the extracellular fluid and in the blood serum results in decreased osmotic pressure, and water therefore enters the cells to equalize the osmotic pressure. Thus there is extracellular dehydration and intercellular hydration—and no thirst.

Water deprivation produces distinctive symptoms in humans. Weight loss, amounting to two to three pounds per day, occurs. Thirst is the most prominent symptom, with the dryness of mouth, decreased production of saliva, and impaired swallowing that accompany it. It is probable that thirst is the result of this subsequent intracellular dehydration and increased intracellular osmotic pressure. Experimentally, thirst can be produced when the cells have lost about 1 percent of their intracellular water.

As dehydration progresses, the tissues tend to shrink, the skin becomes dry and wrinkled, and the eyes become sunken and the eyeballs soft. Fever develops, possibly from mild to marked, as dehydration progresses. Dehydration itself probably affects the temperature regulatory centres in the brain. As dehydration and salt loss progress, however, the plasma volume and heart output decrease, with a consequent decrease in blood supply to the skin. Sweating decreases and may stop completely, and the main avenue for heat loss is closed. The body temperature may then rise precipitously.

There are marked changes in the volume of the extracellular and intracellular fluids, but the blood plasma volume changes the last and the least. The plasma volume is maintained more or less constant at the expense of the tissue fluids. If, however, the plasma volume does fall, the output of the heart also falls, and the pulse rate climbs, all of which indicates a dangerous physical state.

The renal (kidney) changes that occur in humans during prolonged water depletion similarly tend to maintain a normal balance. If water deprivation continues and the plasma volume falls, however, the output of urine will be drastically reduced. As long as urine output of more than 30 millilitres (1 ounce) per hour is maintained, the kidney can excrete nitrogenous and nonnitrogenous solids with maximum efficiency. Once the urine flow is decreased below this level, the kidney is unable to function efficiently, the substances are retained in the body, and their concentration in the blood rises.

The final result of prolonged dehydration is now apparent. The normal distribution of salt and water in the body is destroyed, the plasma volume decreases, and the blood viscosity increases. As a result of these changes renal function is impaired, the urinary output falls, and waste products accumulate. Far more life-threatening, however, is decreased loss of moisture from the skin, with the subsequent rise in temperature, and the fall in cardiac output with the attendant irreversible shock.

Once renal failure occurs, about 8 percent of the total body water has been lost (4 litres [about 4.25 quarts]). When 5 to 10 litres (about 5.25 to 10.5 quarts) of body water have been lost, a person is acutely and severely ill, with contracted plasma volume, increased concentration and viscosity of the blood, renal failure and excessive urea in the blood, and falling blood pressure. In a previously healthy adult, death follows the loss of 12 to 15 litres (about 12.5 to 15.8 quarts) of body water. In the very young, the very old, or the debilitated, death occurs at a lower level of dehydration."





Sources: On Images




For any doctors and/or medical health professionals, I have a business card: