We all know that drinking water is important for our health. But that’s about as far as most of us get. We often don’t realize just HOW MUCH water impacts our body and all the effects dehydration has on us. And, if we are honest, the vast majority of us don’t drink as much water or consume as many hydrating foods as we should.
So let’s dive a LITTLE deeper…starting with the different kinds of dehydration. Yes, there’s more than one!
Types of Dehydration:
Hypotonic/Hyponatremic – The loss of electrolytes, mostly sodium.
Hypertonic/Hypernatremic – The loss of water.
Isotonic/Isonatremic – The loss of both electrolytes and water.
Dehydration Symptoms:
There are some symptoms of dehydration that are more obvious: thirst, feeling sick in the heat…We naturally associate these with dehydration (especially during the hot summer months, or when we are really active). But sometimes the symptoms can be a little more sneaky and effect us in ways that we don’t even think to connect with our body’s lack of water and/or electrolytes.
-Dry Mouth and Bad Breath – Human saliva is primarily composed of water. It is essential in keeping your mouth bacteria-free. Thus, a lack of water can facilitate an overgrowth of these bacteria. This overgrowth of bacteria can cause you to have bad breath.
-Muscle Weakness – Water helps your muscles perform all their day-to-day tasks such as contracting and relaxing. When you have a great loss of fluids or a lack of consumption, your body loses a lot of minerals, When your body has a shortage of minerals such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium, you can find yourself feeling lethargic. Lack of these electrolytes can cause a fluid imbalance and induce muscle spasms.
-Headache – Headaches, due to dehydration, can range from mild to a more severe migraine. When the body is dehydrated, the brain can temporarily contract or shrink from fluid loss. This causes the brain to pull away from the skull, causing pain and resulting in a headache. Now, it may sound a little freaky, but there is no need to panic just yet. Make sure you re-hydrate and your brain will go back to normal.
-Dizziness – Lack of water even affects your blood. When you’re severely dehydrated, your blood pressure can drop. This decreases blood flow to the brain and you can start to feel dizzy.
-Digestive Issues – Your kidneys and liver require water to clean your blood, produce urine and help your body to get rid of waste. Dehydration can worsen constipation, diarrhea and other digestive issues so up your water intake and consume high-fiber foods to “keep things moving.”
-Skin and Hair Issues – Your body needs enough moisture to sweat the amount necessary to dilute toxins so they do not irritate the skin. Lack of water IN the body leads to dry skin on the OUTSIDE, dull and bloodshot eyes and dry, weak and brittle hair.
-Excess Weight – We often times confuse thirst for hunger, so we tend to eat more when what our body really needs is more water or foods rich in water.
-Fatigue – Just about every function in the body depends on water. As we have already learned, water is crucial for proper digestion, it affects your brain health (mood goes a long way in dictating energy levels), it helps your heart pump blood more effectively, and helps transport oxygen and other essential nutrients to your cells. So it’s little wonder dehydration can lower our energy!
Hydrating Foods:
While drinking water is the best way to stay hydrated, you can also do that by adding more hydrating FOODS into your diet. It can be easier, and more fun, to consume these water-rich foods than trying to remember to chug glasses of water every day.
These are NOT to take place of drinking water, you should still continue to do that. But these are ways to ADD to your water consumption, while also consuming other nutrients your body needs at the same time!
-Celery
-Cucumbers
-Bell Peppers
-Watermelon/Melon
-Citrus Fruits
-Kiwi
Now there is the ever asked question: How much water should we be drinking each day? You’ve probably been told that “eight glasses per day” is the the standard recommendation for adults. While that is a good place to start, the actual amount that you need depends on factors of each individual… such as your body size, activity level, age, diet, and how much alcohol, coffee and other drinks you consume.
Ladies, we are special! God made our bodies so unique and able to do so many incredible things!
But with that…we also struggle with a lot of problems, it seems. So often we can tend to think it is miserable and a curse to deal with everything we do. It is not easy for us, and so often it is frustrating and looks like we will never be able to get over it all.
While it’s true that we cannot be completely free of struggles or pain in this life, we CAN change our habits and learn to embrace our bodies and look at these things in the beautiful and complex way that God created us.
PMS
Not the most pleasant part of womanhood, and most definitely not the thing we look forward to every month. But why is that? It is supposed to symbolize good things, right? So why do the majority of us dread its coming?
Is it the emotions? The awkwardness and inconvenience? The pain? The hormone imbalance? Or the uncertainty of what and when something is going to happen? All of these things can incapacitate us or at least make it very difficult for us to function during that time and enjoy life and our regular daily business.
These are all reasons to NOT look forward to that time of the month, but we don’t have to constantly be worrying about all of them.
While I understand that there are conventional treatments out there that many women like to use (such as medications, birth control, etc.) due to convenience and ease (I will not deny that those are temptations in the moment), and while SOME of those things can be beneficial in certain ways at certain times (some can actually cause more damage in the long run or have side effects that you just didn’t bargain for), I believe it is even better to work on your body from the inside out. Use the resources that God gave us and feed them to our body. God invented a machine in us that will do a PHENOMENAL job if we give it the right fuel and support!
Here are some practical things you can do on a regular basis to help make the transition, and the whole period, quite a bit better, and make it easier to go about normal life and activities during your cycle:
Water – Dehydration can cause a ton of problems! And no less so during that time of the month. Staying properly hydrated with water can help improve your focus (we can tend to get pretty foggy brains during this time), build up energy and ease cramps. It is also a good way to flush out toxins in your body.
Food – Feed your body with the good foods to give your body strength and nutrients it needs the most during this time. Foods high in the below vitamins, and plenty of fruits and vegetables (make sure they are in season!) are easy on the stomach when you may be feeling yuck, and give you plenty of the nutrition that your body needs. Some favorites to add to your list could be: Berries (strawberries and blueberries especially for their water content and antioxidants), Watermelon (high in water as well), Oranges (can help relieve constipation and are full of water), Leafy Greens (salads are light and easy and chalk full of vitamins and nutrients), Salmon (full of omega-3 to help relieve inflammation, and just plain all around good!), Dill Pickles (Ever wonder why pregnant women crave pickles? Fermented foods can help the stomach and gut, and dill is known to ease nausea), Chocolate (Some good news for everybody! 🙂 Dark chocolate (the darker the better) is full of magnesium, which can help relax muscles and ease cramps).
Vitamins and Supplements – Calcium (reducing cramps), Magnesium (relieves cramps and relaxes muscles), Omega-3 (reduces inflammation), Iron, Vitamin B (Can help relieve symptoms and regulate irregular cycles. Also helps support metabolism and give you energy.)
Exercise – I know it is probably one of the last things you want to do at this time, but hang in here with me! Your core supports your back, and vise versa. If one is weak, it will cause the other to be as well. If you are exercising well as you approach that time, strengthening your core and back muscles, it can actually help your body support itself and give it a better chance at fighting off cramps and back pain. Plus, exercising increases your blood flow and helps to clear the mind and bring a little more balance to your emotions and temptations to depressing moods.
A word of caution: Don’t go over board! Listen to your body. Sometimes it does need a rest during this time. Whether that means taking a day off, or just doing a small bit of your workout routine and spreading it out through the course of the day. Doing too much when your body needs a reprieve can actually wear you out more and make you feel worse.
Essential Oils – Essential oils can go a long way in helping to ease hurt and help with your emotions. I always like to recommend that you muscle test your oils to see which one your body is needing, but here are some favorites to try: Peppermint (for your stomach OR your back), Orange (can help with your stomach and is very uplifting to the emotions), Lavender (uplifting, and may help you get some good sleep, which is vital, if very allusive, during this time), Jasmine (uplifting and ALMOST impossible not to be happy around ;P ), Clary Sage (can help balance hormones and relieve symptoms), Ylang Ylang(very sweet-smelling to boost your mood and can help balance hormones). Again, I highly suggest you muscle test to see what oil you should try. Your body knows just what it needs!
Avoid – Caffeine, sugar and any processed foods. These can cause a build up of inflammation and make stomach problems, mood swings, and depression worse. Plus, they really don’t give your body any of the actual fuel and nutrients that it needs. I also like to avoid gluten and limit my dairy, which can also lead to inflammation and make stomach cramps even worse.
Skin/Acne
Ladies, let’s admit it: Or skin (especially our face) is something we are pretty self conscious about. We love our skin to look flawless and youthful, and when all those spots appear it’s not only annoying it does tend to make us (even if we don’t always realize it) dislike our appearance. No matter how old we get, we struggle with the appearance of our skin. From acne, to blackheads, to dark spots, to wrinkles.
All these things not only make us a bit self conscious, some of them can also point to some underlying health problems. Here are some things you can do to try and get to the root of the problem and start getting your skin on the road to that clear and healthy looking glow that we all strive for.
Hydration – Water does wonders for your skin. Dehydration can cause dreary skin and even cause breakouts. A hydrated body can produce glowing skin and help to clear up acne. Not only can you get this through drinking lots of water (which you should be doing every day), you can get this through hydrating foods, such as strawberries, watermelon, cucumbers, celery and spinach.
Food – Heal from the inside out! What you put into your body will effect your outsides. Get rid of the sugar and heavily processed foods and fill up on lots of fruits and vegetables and whole foods.
Remove Toxins – Your skin is very absorbent. So if you are applying a lot of toxic chemicals to your skin (makeup, cleansers, acne treatments, etc.)…it will take its toll. Start taking out your chemically laden products and begin replacing them with more natural and organic products.
Hormones and Emotions – Have you noticed more breakouts around that time of the month, or when you are really stressed? Yes, your hormones and emotions can have a rather big effect on the look of your skin. Now, you may think that you can do nothing about that (since those monthly hormones are going to appear, no matter what we do, and it’s impossible to get rid of negative emotions)…but while we may not be able to avoid stress completely or always avoid negative hormone reactions, we can take legitimate steps to minimize them and their effects. I’ll talk about that a little more below.
Hormones
Ladies, as women, we deal with a lot of hormones…and they tend to get out of balance really easily and through our bodies and minds into a whole lot of confusion and turmoil.
Now, we tend to think there is nothing we can do about it. It’s inevitable. We just have to deal with it. While we cannot fix every little issue forever and never have to deal with any hormonal imbalance… through good habits in nutrition, exercise, managing our stress level, and controlling our mental state, we are indeed able to influence our hormonal balance. So it’s not a hopeless case after all!!
How do we do that?
Food – Consume some good: Healthy fats, Probiotics, Bone Broth and Greens. All of these are good for helping to balance hormones…and for your body over all. The nutrients from vegetables, most especially greens, break down an excess of estrogens. Other nutrients like iodine and selenium for active thyroid hormones, zinc and magnesium for the production of testosterone, and amino acids like arginine and ornithine for the production of growth hormone.
Essential Oils – To help balance hormones, you want to get rid of toxins from body care products, synthetic fragrances and cleaning products. Start replacing them with good quality essential oils: Thyme improves progesterone production, which can help to relieve infertility, menopause, depression and insomnia. Sandalwood can reduce stress that leads to hormone imbalance and help promote relaxation. Lavender can help balance and improve emotions, relieve stress and promote good sleep. All of which are important to good hormone health. Clary Sage helps to balance estrogen levels, and can help relieve PMS symptoms and regulate your monthly cycle.
Vitamin D – A lot of problems with our health can be linked to a deficiency in this vitamin. Low levels of vitamin D can interfere with testosterone and estrogen production, and can cause hormone imbalances that can bring on a lot of unwanted symptoms, including unwanted weight gain. You can get this much needed vitamin through some good fish, liver and eggs, but the best way is through actual SUNLIGHT!
Emotions
We women go through a lot of emotions! Sometimes all in the course of one day.
They can cause major mood swings, hurt our bodies physically and mentally. To make us sick, cause our skin to break out, cause depression, OR to give us energy and make us happier and healthier! Often times women can suffer negative emotions a lot easier and more often than men. We go through PMS, menopause, pregnancy, motherhood, etc. And we tend to think a lot and dwell on so many things (our minds never shut off). Plus, God did make us more emotional than men. That does not necessarily mean a bad thing.
But that doesn’t mean we have to let them control us or allow them to damage our health. There are ways we can avoid that, and steps we can take minimize emotional damage and the appearance of negative emotions…though we cannot avoid it completely.
You can check this previous article I wrote, where I go into a bit more detail about emotions, their affects on our bodies and what we can do to improve our emotional health.
Tell me what I missed! What ways have you found to help your body and mind through these struggles?
What happens in our gut effects what happens throughout our entire body. So you begin with the gut to cleanse the skin. Here is a list of some of my favorite “do”s and “don’t”s for healthy skin, starting with…
What Goes Inside
NO gluten – Gluten can cause inflammation and cause irritation to the gut and digestive system. Remember, what happens in the gut effects the rest of the body. Plus, the gluten in the U.S. today is highly processed and grown with chemicals that can do lots of damage to the body.
NO dairy – The dairy industry today is quite a bit different than back in the olden days. Especially that from cows. Dairy can cause inflammation and it can cause your skin to produce excess sebum which leads to clogged pores and more acne.
NO sugar – Sugar can break down the collagen in your body and your skin can lose its elasticity. It can also cause inflammation. Opt for an antioxidant honey instead.
NO highly processed foods – All the extra sugar and chemical intake from these foods wears down the collagen and elastin in your skin. It also causes inflammation in the skin, which can lead to acne breakouts. (NOTE: Processed foods can be kind of tricky to define. It’s probably a good idea to know what processed foods are.)
Stay hydrated – Even when you don’t feel like drinking water adding some cucumbers and watermelon to your diet (especially during the summer) is a delicious way to stay hydrated. 🙂
EAT probiotics– The good bacteria in probiotics helps keep your gut healthy. Having a healthy gut helps to have healthy skin.
EAT Omega-3s – Your omega-9 fatty acids are great for glowing skin. They can help soothe inflammation that can be a cause for acne breakouts as well.
EAT Vitamin C – It is well known for having antioxidant properties, and can also help against sun damage. Citrus fruits and vegetables are a great natural source of this important vitamin.
EAT Bone Broth – Bone broth is high in collagen which can help reduce inflammation and improve the skin’s elasticity.
What Goes Outside
Clean and treat your face at night. Your face gets dirty throughout the day, and your makeup can clog your pores, causing more breakouts.
Switching your products too regularly might not agree with your skin. Give the product time to work.
Look at the ingredients. Avoid chemicals and synthetic scents and colors. The closer to nature your products are, the better for your skin. Do you know how much FOOD you can put on to help your skin health?? There are a lot I could name, but I’ll just give you three favorites.
Apple Cider Vinegar – Apple cider vinegar can help to kill pathogens and helps to cleanse the skin. It contains potassium and magnesium to help balance gut bacteria, which is vital to skin health. It is also a more inexpensive product…and it can go a long way.
Coconut Oil – Coconut oil can help strengthen the epidermal tissue, ease sunburns and is even a good makeup remover. It contains anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, plus a lot of healthy fats that help nourish the gut and improve immune function. A way to improve your skin health from the inside out!
Raw Honey – RAW honey is full of enzymes, nutrients and vitamins for the skin. It also contains antiseptic qualities that can help with rashes, scars and wounds, and may help to reduce breakouts and contain moisturizing properties.
Essential Oils
Lemon– Lemon just seems to brighten up everything! And your face is no exception! It is antibacterial and it can help lighten dark spots and tone the skin. avoid applying lemon, or any citrus oil, to your skin that will be exposed to sunlight or UV light for 24 hours.
Lavender – Lavender contains antimicrobial and antioxidant characteristics that make it great for the skin. It is one of the more gentler oils so it can be soothing for itching and burning skin. And soothing to the nose as well.
Frankincense – Frankincense has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. It may help to strengthen and tone the skin and may improve elasticity. It may also help to reduce the appearance of scars and acne.
Tea Tree – Tea Tree oil has long been used in Australia to help fight inflammation, break outs and some redness on the skin. It is usually very gentle on the skin and is great when combined with a carrier oil…such as coconut oil.
We would all love to have clear, flawless skin, right? But we can never seem to get rid of those annoying wrinkles or those pesky red spots. Just when you get rid of one two more pop up somewhere else. Usually we rush for some treatment we see on a commercial (those people have perfect skin so it must work, right?). But the chemicals in those treatments make our problem worse.
Here are 4 natural tips to try and minimize acne and other other problems and help maintain clear and healthy skin.
1. Stress
Stress causes hormone imbalances which results in many skin problems, such as acne, eczema, hives and psoriasis. Stress hormones increase oil production, which can lead to clogged pores and whiteheads.
Take time each day to relax. Take a walk in nature, soak in a tub, listen to music or read a book. Whatever make you calm down and leave your cares behind you for a while.
2. Eat the Right Foods
A portion of the body’s toxic waste is eliminated through sweating. If the body has more toxins than the kidneys and liver can get rid of effectively, the skin takes over and the toxins escape through the skin. This can disrupt the skin’s health integrity and cause skin disorders.
It may be cliche to read “you are what you eat.” Actually, you are what you digest. What you put into your body that isn’t used well can come out through your skin in the forms of hives, acne and eczema and many other skin disorders. Avoid processed foods, artificial flavors and high amounts of sugar. Be sure and drink plenty of distilled water and consume foods rich in vitamin E, Biotin and antioxidants, such as berries, almonds and salmon.
3. Avoid Chemicals
Using harsh chemicals and dyes can irritate skin follicles and clog pores. This increases acne and many chemicals can also dry out the skin and cause redness. This includes conventional household cleaning products AND your skincare products. It may be time to clean out your skincare routine and check up on the ingredients in your makeups and beauty products.
4. Essential Oils
Essential Oils are a great way to clear and rejuvenate the skin. Most essential oils are gentle on the skin and they get to the root of the problem instead of just treating the symptom. Essential oils have the power to kill the bad bacteria in your skin. Lavender oil also is great for protecting the skin from irritation and soothing stress.
*Not every essential oil used by one person may be the one that is right for you. I recommend testing each one to see what works for you. Bring me your oils and let me teach you muscle testing to discover what oils work for you.
