If you don’t drink enough water every day, you may get dehydrated. The most common signs of dehydration are:

• Urinating less frequently than usual, or passing urine that looks dark yellow or brown

• Having a dry, sticky mouth or cracked lips

• Feeling tired

• Feeling dizzy or unsteady

• Your eyes look “sunken” in your face

How dehydration is dangerous to your health:

1. Dehydration can lead to digestive problems, constipation, and an overly acidic stomach. This increases the risk of heartburn and stomach ulcers.

2. Dehydration can affect brain structure and function. Prolonged dehydration can lead to problems with thinking and reasoning.

3. Dehydration can also affect hormone levels as water is involved in the production of hormones and neurotransmitters.

4. It makes your blood thicker, which may lead to thrombosis and other cardiac problems.

5. When dehydrated, airways are restricted by the body in an effort to minimize water loss. This can make asthma and allergies worse.

6. Insufficient water intake can lead to kidney stones and other problems.

7. Some scientists have suggested that when there is too little water in the body, heat storage increases and the individual is less able to tolerate heat strain.

8. Seizures. Electrolytes — such as potassium and sodium — help carry electrical signals from cell to cell. If your electrolytes are out of balance, the normal electrical messages can become mixed up, which can lead to involuntary muscle contractions and sometimes to a loss of consciousness.

9. It reduces performance in activities lasting longer than 30 minutes.

To avoid dehydration make sure to drink sufficient amounts of clear water every day. You get some water from the food you eat and other beverages, but drinking clear water is essential as well.

General recommendations for women: about 2.7 liters (91 ounces) of total water -- from all beverages and foods -- each day (men, by the way, have to drink more, about 3.7 liters (125 ounces) of total water daily).  

Track the volumes of water you drink every day with the MIA Water Tracker to take control

of your daily water intake.

Sources:

Hydration effects on temperature regulation, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Dehydration, mayoclinic.org

Fifteen benefits of drinking water, medicalnewstoday.com