With heavy sweating (for example, at high temperatures in summer, in overheated rooms or with fever), with vomiting or diarrhea and with a diet, the water requirement increases significantly. During physical exertion, it is also necessary to drink more – a lack of water very quickly reduces performance and endangers health in sports, because water is the body’s most important means of transport and cooling.
Older people often drink too little
The thirst sensation decreases with age, many older people therefore do not even notice that they drink too little. Often, the elderly also have misconceptions about their fluid needs, fear going to the toilet at night, or simply forget to drink anything.
In addition, the kidneys often excrete more fluid as a result of a reduced ability to concentrate. This is why the elderly are particularly susceptible to dehydration.
According to the recommendations of the German Nutrition Society (DGE), older adults should consume a total of about 2.25 liters of fluid per day. This includes two-thirds of suitable beverages and one-third of solid foods such as fruit, salad and dairy products.
4 tips for proper drinking
- How do you get your drinking quota? Every meal should be accompanied by a drink. This makes the food easier to digest. In addition, you ensure that the body regularly receives minimum amounts of fluid. And you ensure that the ingested fiber can swell well.
- Distribute your daily drinking amount evenly throughout the day – research has shown that people who regularly drink again and again absorb more fluid than those who drink only on a few occasions, but then abundantly. So at work, at home or during your free time, always place a drink within visible reach. This will remind you to drink enough.
- Alternate between different drinks – so you get the desire to drink. As drinks offer mineral water, juice spritzer or fruit or herbal tea. By the way, it is an old wives’ tale that coffee or tea dehydrate the body. They count as any other drink to the daily fluid intake.
- Alcohol deprives the body of fluid and minerals. Therefore, there is often a great feeling of thirst even after drinking alcohol. This thirst should be quenched with soft drinks, table water or mineral water.
