Sitting in the stands at an Atlanta Braves baseball game during a hot Georgia afternoon, I didn’t feel well. My fitness watch showed my heart rate climbing over 100 beats per minute. That didn’t make sense…I was just sitting there. By the third inning and still feeling unwell, I asked my husband to get me a bottle of water. Within a few minutes of drinking it, my heart rate returned to normal. Duh, I was dehydrated!
Here’s the thing…I know about the importance of hydration for older adults, yet my mind didn’t connect with my 75-year-old body quickly enough that day. I wouldn’t be surprised if many of you have had similar moments.
Why Older Adults Feel Dehydration More Quickly
Several age-related changes make hydration extra important:
- Thirst is less reliable. When we are dehydrated, the thirst response diminishes even further making it more challenging to rehydrate.
- Diminished ability to regulate body temperature. Older adults produce less sweat, and sweating is one of the body’s main cooling mechanisms.
- Change in kidney function. The kidneys become less efficient at concentrating, so more water is lost.
- Medications matter. Diuretics and other prescription medicines can increase fluid loss.
What Can We Do?
- Drink ahead of thirst, in other words, plan to consume fluids throughout the day. Women need about 3 liters (or about 3 quarts) a day (or even more when exercising and sweating), so it might look like:
- 20 ounces (1 cup = 8 ounces) at breakfast
- 12 ounces during the morning
- 20 ounces at lunch
- 12 ounces during the afternoon
- 20 ounces at dinner
- 12 ounces in the evening
- Know how much your favorite water bottle holds and keep it refilled during the day.
- While water is nature’s hydration queen, all fluids count: coffee, tea, soft drinks, smoothies, beer, and wine (although shots of liquor don’t count and alcohol shouldn’t be your hydration strategy.)
- High water foods count, too, fresh, frozen, and canned fruits and veggies contribute about 20% of water intake. Watermelon is 92% water!
- Use your fitness watch to track hydration or download a free app to monitor fluid intake.
- Consider electrolyte drinks if you’re sweating heavily, such as playing pickleball on outdoor courts in the summer heat. Sports drinks with carbohydrate, sodium, and potassium help replace fluids more quickly. (I personally like the OG Gatorade, the purple one.)
For a good review of hydration strategies for older adults, click here.
I learned that plain water alone can be absorbed as quickly as 5 minutes which explains why that bottle of water at the ballpark helped rehydrate me so fast.
As Bob Murray, my co-author of Food & Fitness After 50, says:
“The human body is basically a leaky bag of water with legs!”
Here’s to plugging the leaks and staying well hydrated as we age.
I’m Chris Rosenbloom, PhD, RD (Registered Dietitian) and nutrition professor emerita (a fancy word for retired) at Georgia State University in Atlanta. I am also a 51-year member of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. I love to read and write and share the fascinating world of nutrition with (older) adults. I co-authored Food & Fitness After 50 (with Bob Murray) and we just finished copy editing the second edition (more to come on that). I am 75 years old and believe aging is a privilege, so I don’t whine about getting older, even when I forget to hydrate!
