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Dehydration From Menopause

Dehydration can occur in peri-menopausal and menopausal women because our bodies can easily become deficient in fluids due to hot flashes and night sweats. If a woman keeps her body hydrated by drinking a lot of fluids this will help cool the brain as well as the skin on your face. The more hydrated you are, the less likely you will be to have a hot flash.

  1. Drink Abundantly

    • If you weight 150 pounds, try to drink at least 75 oz. (half of 150) of water per day. It also helps if you take daily amino acid supplements as well as zinc and 100 mg of B6 per day, which also prevent dehydration. Amino acids and B vitamins are critical when it comes to proper functioning of a woman's hormones. If your hormones are kept in check, you are less likely to have hot flashes and night sweats. Foods rich in protein will also keep your hormones balanced, which should prevent, or at least minimize, hot flashes and the subsequent dehydration.

    Side Effects of Dehydration

    • When you are dehydrated, your brain and other body parts aren't getting enough nutrients or oxygen, which can make you irritable. Excessive sweating, which menopausal women may experience, can result in a significant loss of body fluids.

    What It Can Do to Your Skin

    • In addition, dehydration can exacerbate the wrinkling of your skin. A menopausal woman is no longer producing sufficient amounts of estrogen, which keeps skin supple, nor do women produce as many natural skin oils. High levels of estrogen mean high levels of fluids. These combined factors can result in dry, wrinkled skin. Most of the fluids that we ingest come out through urine and sweat. As we get older, we are even less able to conserve water, so we lose even more. Brittle nails can also be the result of dehydration, according to 34-menopause-symptoms.com.

    Potential

    • If you are suffering from dehydration, you may experience lethargy, a dry mouth, weakness in your muscles, dizziness and a headache. If you are extremely dehydrated, you may not be able to sweat at all, your heart may beat faster and your blood pressure will be lower. Your eyes may appear sunken and your skin will be dry and shriveled. You may develop a fever, and it is possible to lose consciousness, according to Medicalnewstoday.com.

    The Elderly

    • The Mayo Clinic explains that older individuals in general are more susceptible to dehydration. As we age, our thirst sense becomes less keen, and we are also less capable of responding to changes in temperature. That coupled with our body's inability to conserve water as it once did, as mentioned earlier, put older people at risk for dehydration. If an older person has a chronic illness, that increases his risk of dehydration. The hormonal changes associated with menopause also increase your risk. Certain medicines may also make you become dehydrated if they cause you to urinate a lot.

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