Let's talk about water. Water is absolutely amazing. Humans need water to regulate their body temperatures, expel wastes and toxins, absorb nutrients for use in the body, and to perform many other crucial tasks. In fact, around 75% of a human's body weight is actually water. So, why is proper hydration even more important for IC patients?
Often times, IC patients skip out on drinking a lot of fluids because they feel that the greater their intake, the greater their frequency and discomfort level. This is not true. While I'm not telling you to chug water all day, dehydration can cause terrible IC flare-ups in many patients. Without adequate water intake, our urine pH level drops, causing it to be more acidic.What does this lead to? Horrible, painful burning- like squeezing a lemon into an open wound. Not good! The darker and more cloudy your urine is, the more pain it will cause. It's important to aim for a neutral urine pH (often a more diluted, pale yellow color). This will be much less irritating.
It is important for IC patients to get at least the standard 6-8 glasses of water in every day to make sure that they are properly hydrated. Instead of drinking a glass at a time, try to take small sips over the course of the day. This will decrease the volume of urine in your bladder at any given time, causing less distention and less discomfort. Also, if you find that you are often awake at night with increased discomfort, try to cut back your fluid intake towards the evening time. This will prevent you from being up all night!
Happy healing!
No comments:
Post a Comment