THE 3- SECOND TEST THAT SHOWS IF YOU ARE DEHYDRATED
Do you often find yourself feeling thirsty? Yep, it happens to us as well. Sometimes life just gets too busy and you find yourself running around all day without taking even a sip of water. There are days when you forget your bottle at home, sometimes you leave it at the office and sometimes your favorite bottle mysteriously disappears, as your partner so conveniently borrowed it again. Without even knowing, you are ending the day with a bad headache, your skin feels dry and the brain all fuzzy.
To prevent first signs of dehydration it's important to stay hydrated throughout the day, but we know that with your busy everyday schedule, it's hard to keep track of water consumption. Luckily there is a super easy way to find whether you are properly hydrated - the pinch test also known as the Skin turgor test.
According to the National Library of Medicine, Skin turgor refers to the skin's elasticity and its ability to change shape and return to normal. Lack of skin turgor or its elasticity can occur due to fluid loss when your body is not properly hydrated.
HOW TO DO A PINCH TEST:
To test the skins turgor and find out weather you are dehydrated do the following steps
- Pinch the skin on the top of your hand using two fingers.
- Hold the skin in place with your fingers for three seconds.
- Release the skin and see if it snaps back to its normal position.
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If the skin snaps back to its regular form, you're hydrated. If it takes a while to get back to its original shape it's a sign of fluid loss due to dehydration.
3 TIPS HOW TO PREVENT DEHYDRATION
- The first and most obvious one - drink more fluids. Preferably water, but you can also include unsweetened tea or natural pressed juice for increased fluid intake. Also, and we know this is a hard one, try to limit your coffee intake, or at least take a big glass of water with your morning fuel.
- Get your fluids from food as well. Fruit and vegetables with high water content such as strawberries, watermelon, cucumber or tomatoes make a great source of hydration as well.
- Don't wait until you feel thirsty to hydrate. Most recommendations focus on how much water we need to drink, but not enough is said about how often you should be sipping on your water. The frequency and even distribution of water intake during the day is actually the key to preventing dehydration. Take a sip every 20 min to keep your hydration level high.
If you keep forgetting to drink enough water, another great solution could be a Smart water bottle or as we like to call it - your personal hydration coach. Thanks to integrated smart technology, EQUA Smart will track your water intake and send you glowing reminders when it is the time to take the next sip. How convenient is that?
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