It's okay to just drink water when you're thirsty
But if you often feel thirsty
Then it needs attention
This could be the body sending you a distress signal
01
Is constant thirst a disease?
In general, thirst is because your body is short of water.
(1) Physiological thirst
Excessive exercise causes water to evaporate too quickly in the body
Usually, just drinking water in time can quench your thirst.
However, we also need to note that even if you are thirsty, you should not drink too much water at one time, so as not to cause electrolyte imbalance in the body.
Eat too salty or dry and consume too much salt
In general, adults should not consume more than 5 grams of salt per day, which is equivalent to a full serving of a beer bottle cap.
Exceeding the intake can cause physiological thirst, which may lead to adverse effects such as puffiness, hair loss, weight gain, and skin spotting.
Image source: Draft design
Salt requires water metabolism, and when too much salt is consumed, there is not enough water in the body to metabolize it, triggering a feeling of thirst.
If water is not metabolized adequately, it can lead to water and sodium retention, which can lead to facial puffiness.
Decreased saliva production in older people
Older people experience gradual deterioration of bodily functions, including atrophy of fluid-producing glands, which leads to decreased saliva production and a predisposition to dry mouth.
(2) Pathological thirst
Respiratory infections
For example, a common cold or fever can also cause a feeling of dry mouth. High fever can lead to the loss of water from the body, which in turn can lead to symptoms of dry mouth. In general, once the condition improves, the symptoms of dry mouth will return to normal.
Therefore, for people who are sick, drinking more water is not just an empty phrase, it does have a scientific basis.
diarrhoea
Image source: Draft design
Because the body loses a lot of water, it can lead to symptoms of pathological thirst.
Oral diseases
For example, conditions such as mumps, oral gland stones, or submandibular adenitis can cause decreased saliva production, which in turn can lead to symptoms of dry mouth.
Depression, anxiety
It is important to note that the side effects of some medications may cause feelings of thirst. For example, antidepressants amitriptyline and imipramine, and drugs such as the antihypertensive drugs prazosin and clonidine may cause thirst.
In addition, other symptoms such as menstruation, vomiting, burns, etc. can also trigger thirst, which is a signal that the body is reminding you to replenish water in time.
Image source: Draft design
02
What symptoms of dry mouth should I be alert to?
Feeling thirsty often may be a precursor to these diseases.
(1) Autonomic nervous disorders
Image source: Draft design
The secretion of the salivary glands is controlled by the autonomic nerves, and if the nerves are dysfunctional, it can lead to dry mouth and thirst, and in severe cases, symptoms of a foreign body sensation in the throat may occur.
(2) Diabetes
Dry mouth is one of the common symptoms of diabetes, and about 30% to 50% of patients experience it. If blood sugar is poorly controlled, the feeling of thirst can worsen, even to the point where you need to get up in the middle of the night to drink water to relieve discomfort.
(3) Inflammatory diseases
For example, common laryngitis and tonsillitis affect the oral mucosa, leading to decreased secretory function that can trigger symptoms of dry mouth.
(4) Sjogren's syndrome
Dry mouth is a symptom of systemic immune rheumatic disease.
Due to a disorder in the immune system, immune cells attack the body's salivary and tear glands, causing a feeling of thirst.
Image source: Draft design
In severe cases, you will even wake up in the middle of the night to drink water, which will affect the quality of sleep. The disease is more common in women, especially in the female population between the ages of 40 and 50.
(5) Diabetes insipidus
Polyuria caused by abnormal water metabolism in the body, that is, the daily urine output exceeds 5000 ml, which is equivalent to the capacity of 9 bottles of standard mineral water.
Polyuria is often accompanied by symptoms such as light urine and abnormal dry mouth.
(6) Hyperthyroidism
This is because the concentration of thyroxine in patients with hyperthyroidism increases, resulting in accelerated metabolism in the body, producing more heat and accelerating heat dissipation, so the body's need for water also increases, which is easy to cause dry mouth symptoms.
(7) Kidney disease
Image source: Draft design
Pyelonephritis and hydronephrosis cause the kidneys to lose their ability to retain water, leading to symptoms of thirst.
Especially in patients undergoing dialysis therapy, dehydration during hemodialysis can also aggravate the feeling of thirst.
(8) Anemia
The feeling of thirst is due to the loss of red blood cells in the body much faster than they are produced, resulting in fluid loss.
This condition is more common in menstruating women, many of whom become thirsty due to heavy menstrual bleeding and neglect the symptoms of anemia in the body.
(9) Hypotension
Low blood pressure triggers feelings of thirst, which is a way the body tries to raise blood pressure levels in order to increase the amount of water in the blood.
(10) Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease
Frequent dry mouth in older people requires attention and can be a precursor to Parkinson's or Alzheimer's.
Image source: Draft design
The cause of these diseases is the gradual degeneration of the central nervous system, and the symptoms are not obvious and not easy to detect.
However, the salivary glands are also part of the nervous system, so thirst and dry mouth are among the possible symptoms of early Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
(11) Depression, anxiety
Such patients may feel thirsty due to long-term use of drugs such as amitriptyline and imipramine.
In addition, psychological factors may also cause feelings of thirst, such as suggesting that you are thirsty and dry mouth, forcing yourself to drink water, otherwise you will feel unwell.
However, not all thirst requires excessive worry, because thirst is a normal physiological phenomenon and there is no need to worry too much about whether it is a precursor to a disease.
03
Teach you to get the correct drinking posture
01
Don't wait until you're thirsty to drink water
When the body signals thirst, it means that it is already in a state of insufficient water. Therefore, in daily life, we should develop the habit of drinking more water and drinking water frequently.
Image source: Draft design
Adults need to consume about 1500 ml of water per day to maintain the body's water balance.
02
The first glass of light salt water in the morning is not suitable for everyone
Drinking salt water can aggravate your body's dehydration and make you thirsty even more, especially in older people, and may lead to higher blood pressure and greater risk.
In general, only in cases of dehydration caused by strenuous exercise or diarrhea, it is necessary to supplement the so-called "light salt water" to maintain the balance of electrolytes. The average person does not need to drink salt water regularly.
03
The best option is to drink plain water
Image source: Draft design
If you don't like to drink plain water, you can consider choosing lemonade or a lighter tea drink. However, in any case, make sure you consume enough pure water to maintain your body's water balance.
4
Drink less carbonated drinks and milk tea
Carbonated drinks should not be mistaken for replacing water, as they are far removed from water in function and cannot be considered as a substitute for moisture, despite their attractive taste.
In particular, some young people like to drink soda, but drinking these drinks when thirsty not only does not quench thirst, but may also aggravate the feeling of dry mouth.
Image source: Draft design
Drinking water can only relieve immediate thirst, and if thirst persists, it is necessary to consider whether it is pathological thirst, and the underlying problem can be solved by seeking medical attention or changing lifestyle habits.
For example, quit staying up late, avoid excessive greasy and high-salt foods, eat as light as possible, control salt intake, drink more water and drink water diligently, so that you and your family can maintain a healthy physical condition.
Recommended reading
Do you drink water when it's hot?
How to properly hydrate under high temperature environmental conditions?
Health science popularization video recommended "Guangxi Disease Control Health Science Popularization Lecture Hall" - can understand, learn, use!
Cover of this issue:
Source | Popular Science Chinese Literature | Li Tiande Mei, ed Li Tiande proofreading | Yu Zongrong, Qin Yifei, Chen Shengxing, ed Yu Zongrong Statement | The source network of the data, and only used for popular science public welfare publicity, such as invasion and deletion.
Health certificate consultation: 0771-5318251
Outpatient pharmacy consultation: 0771-5318031
AIDS Voluntary Counseling: 0771-5327110
AIDS Treatment Clinic: 0771-2518326
Sample testing consultation: 0771-2518890
The above telephone answering hours are: Monday to Friday (except statutory holidays) 8:00-12:00 a.m., 15:00-18:00 p.m.
Health certificate physical examination time: every Monday to Friday (except statutory holidays) 8:00-11:30 a.m., 15:00-17:00 p.m., registration location: No. 80 Taoyuan Road (Taoyuan Clinic).
Vaccination time: 8:00-11:30 a.m. and 15:00-17:30 p.m. every Monday to Friday (except statutory holidays), vaccination location: No. 80 Taoyuan Road (Taoyuan Clinic), No. 18 Jinzhou Road (Chengxi Clinic).
Holiday vaccination duty time: 8:30-11:30 a.m., vaccination location: No. 80 Taoyuan Road (Taoyuan Clinic)