- Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer On election day, sweltering in the heat, the last thing you need is to fall ill from dehydration.
BY NOW all the happy troopers are off the campaign trail and should be winding down their political activities but today, election day, is still a crucial day and many people will be up and about outdoors, sweating in the heat. The healthy behaviour in that situation is to avoid dehydration by drinking enough water throughout the day. Dehydration, the health experts say, even in its mild form can trigger feelings of sluggishness, nausea and exhaustion.
It's really a cliché to say water is essential for life but two-thirds of our body weight is water. When the body becomes dehydrated and you feel thirsty, water and critical salts are being lost from the tissues.
But drinking water is not only about maintaining enough fluids in tissue cells, water intake has other important functions for example, water moves food through the intestinal tract alleviating constipation. The Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute (CFNI) points out also that water:
helps in the digestion and absorption of food
carries nutrients to body cells
helps regulate body temperature and
is an important part of all cells and fluids in the body.
Nutritionist, Stephen Robinson points out that water is the most important nutrient for the competing athlete. He said that studies have shown that dehydrated individuals are intolerant of exercise, and prone to excess generation of heat. Water should be taken before, during and after any form of aerobic exercise. Even a slight amount of dehydration will almost certainly result in underperformance.
As a general guide, one pint (about 500ml) of water should be taken for each pound (0.45kg) of weight lost during training. Generally, the recommendation is to drink six to eight, eight-ounce glasses of water each day or half the body weight in ounces. Caffeine and alcohol should be avoided as these beverages can enhance water loss.
"There is no doubt that, at the competitive level, if genetic endowment and level of training are equal, the athlete who pays attention to good nutrition will have a competitive edge," Mr. Robinson said.
SOME WATER FACTS
Water is also obtained by taking soup, milk, and juices
Alcoholic drinks and beverages with caffeine (for example, coffee, tea and colas) have a diuretic effect (they take fluids from the body) and are therefore not good substitutes for water
If you don't drink enough water everyday, the body's fluids will become out of balance.
