Staying Hydrated…It’s That Important!
Maybe you’ve heard me say how important staying hydrated is and it just didn’t sink in. Or you read about the benefits and dismissed it as something not too important. Well, let me tell you, staying hydrated is the best thing you can do for your overall health.
Coffee, tea, soda, fruit juice and even those “so-called” sports drinks all have at least some flavor you crave, but honest-to-goodness water is by far the best choice for you. Oh, and most of those drinks have high amounts of sugar and caffeine in them which isn’t healthy for you at all.
Your tissues, your cells, your organs, your heart and even your brain all depend on water. Your core body temperature is regulated by water, your joints are lubricated by water and water helps expel toxins from your system. Your body needs water to survive…period! So why not drink more of it?
Have you ever been… dizzy, confused, experienced headaches, sleepiness or fatigue, were extremely thirsty, had dry mouth, tried to cry but no tears came out, or had little or no urine or urine that is darker than usual? You could have been dehydrated!
And maybe when you got thirsty you reached for your favorite beverage…was it water? Most of my close to 10,000 patients didn’t really drink water either. But they do now!
Before The Sleeve.
Maybe your drinking habits weren’t so great. Water was probably the last thing you poured yourself when thirsty. Diet colas, sweetened drinks, alcohol, even milkshakes were your “go-to” fluid sources. Sure they taste good…just, not very good for you. Most of those products just made you crave more, pack on more weight and made your kidneys work twice as hard filtering out all of the junk.
After Sleeve Surgery.
The first week after getting your VSG procedure (vertical sleeve gastrectomy) your primary focus should be about staying hydrated. It’s very important to remember that the sleeve is very swollen after surgery, and the stomach’s space is very limited. The first few days immediately after surgery is very difficult to get enough water in, unless you focus on the frequency of sipping your fluids. You will not be able to gulp water down after surgery, so I would encourage you to try this technique.
Sip & Wait.
You take a tiny sip then wait 2-3 minutes, then repeat as needed throughout the day. With this method you’ll be able to get enough fluids to keep you hydrated. And as the days go by you’ll notice you’re able to drink more (even gulp) without having to sip and wait.
It’s important to develop good fluid intake habits after sleeve surgery as that will help contribute to losing weight and staying healthy. Keeping yourself hydrated will help keep your mind alert, allow you to cry tears of joy when you reach your goal weight and help your body feel great every day.
To learn more about hydration, weight loss tips, even the gastric sleeve surgery I invite you visit my website or catch my weekly YouTube program called The #AskDrA Show. And you can even ask me questions via SnapChat, Facebook, Twitter,Instagram or Pinterest.
