The heat of summer is upon us. It’s very easy to get dehydrated. Foods and beverages can help keep you hydrated and provide a little more variety than just drinking water.
Amy Batti, registered dietician, shares tips for staying hydrated when the heat is on.
Selected Podcast
Keeping Hydrated During Summer Time!
Featuring:
Amy Batti, RD
Amy Batti, RD is a registered dietician with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. Transcription:
Bill Klaproth: Hydration is just one part of a healthy lifestyle, especially for older adults. But staying hydrated often is tougher than it sounds. Here to talk with us about keeping hydrated during the summer is Amy Batti, a registered dietician with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. Amy thank you so much for your time today. So why is hydration so important, especially for seniors?
Amy Batti, RD: So, as we age, we become more vulnerable to lower water intake. That can lead to things like dehydration, which is one of the most frequent causes of dehydration among seniors. So, we really want to make sure we’re encouraging adequate water intake, especially during the summer months when we’re more susceptible to being dehydrated.
Bill: So, what are some of the signs and symptoms of dehydration?
Amy: So, the first sign is usually thirst. So, it occurs when about 1 to 2% loss of body water. Many older adults, seniors, however they have a diminished sense of thirst and they don’t necessarily know they’re becoming dehydrated. One easy sign to check for is the color of your urine. I know it’s not very desirable thing, but it should be a clear or pale yellow. Darker urine indicates that you’re not meeting fluid needs. Some vitamin supplements at high levels will also give the urine a dark color, but it’s also a sign of dehydration. Also, when loss of body water ranges from about 2 to 5%, symptoms can include dry mouth, flushed skin, headache, fatigue, and impaired physical performance. That’s another thing. Another indication of increased body temperature, increased pulse rate, and increased breathing. Other things, dizziness, weakness as I mentioned, and labored breathing. So, all these things are signs of dehydration.
Bill: Well that’s a great list and thanks for sharing that with us Amy. So, what is the general rule of thumb? How much water… I know this is a per-person and an individualized thing, but in general, how much water should a senior be drinking each day?
Amy: So, we want to make sure to get about 48 to 64 ounces per day. That’s about 6 to 8 eight-ounce glasses. Everyone is going to be different based on their body weight and composition. So, a smaller woman wouldn’t necessarily need as an older man. So, about that. We want to make sure we’re getting at least 48 ounces a day.
Bill: As I mentioned, just saying drink more water, it sounds easy, but sometimes it’s not. Do you have any tips for us? Some easy ways that a senior can increase their water intake throughout the day?
Amy: Yes. So, one thing I like to tell people is taking a bottle of water with you when you travel anywhere. Just keeping the bottle reminds you to stay hydrated. Refill it when it’s empty. Having a glass of water when you first wake up in the morning is a good routine to have. Then whenever you, if you don’t have a water bottle, whenever you walk by a water fountain, stop and take a sip. Make a habit of drinking water before and after and during any physical activity. So even light physical activity I would recommend to make sure you’re drinking water before and after. Then just schedule water breaks throughout the day. Most people take coffee breaks. So instead, make one or two of those a water break instead of coffee because coffee is also dehydrating. It offers some fluids, but it’s also a diuretic, so it can be dehydrating.
Bill: Let me ask you this Amy. Water is great, but it can be other things as well. Like half water, half juice. Fruit infused water, pre-flavored waters. Is that right?
Amy: Yes. So, things that count as water are water, of course. Milk actually contains a lot of water. There’s soup depending on what kind of soup that most of them are water based. Not the creamy ones. Fruit and vegetable juice. Gelatin, so like Jell-O’s. If you think about when they melt, they turn into fluid. There’s water in there. Decaffeinated soft drinks and tea and coffee. So those all contain water.
Bill: What about foods? You were mentioning foods. Fruits and vegetables can be hydrating as well. What are some foods to concentrate on?
Amy: So hydrating foods include watermelon, cucumber, citrus fruits, applesauce, or yogurt. A lot of these foods contain high water content. So good choices.
Bill: Well, those are great tips on hydrating foods. Are there any other ways to increase water intake Amy?
Amy: So, again with the fruits and vegetables, at one of our water bottle residences, we like to add fruit and vegetables to infuse our water. We’ll have big pitchers of infused water, which add nutrients and also help the water to taste better. Hopefully, encouraging them to drink more of it. So, doing that and just making sure the staff is always reminding them, because again they forget. Like I mentioned before, the water bottle is a good idea. Just to keep a reminder. Good tips keeping those hydrating snacks on hand.
Bill: Amy let me ask you this about outdoor exercise. I know a lot of seniors want to get out and stretch or do yoga or walk. They should probably do it earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon when the sun isn’t as hot. Is that right?
Amy: Exactly. So extra earlier in the morning or waiting ‘till the sun goes down. Those are probably the best times because midday is when it’s the hottest. You know we just had a heat wave over the weekend. It was… So, making sure to stay indoors. I would recommend doing indoor activities on days that it’s super hot to eliminate the risk of being dehydrated.
Bill: Amy if you could wrap it up for us. Do you have any other tips or things we need to know about as far as keeping hydrated during the summer?
Amy: So, again, my main recommendations would be keep a water bottle on hand, drink from the water fountain any time you pass them by, have scheduled water breaks throughout the day, and eating fruits, vegetables that are high in water content.
Bill: Well, Amy, thanks for the great tips. We appreciate it and thank you so much for you time. For more information, you can visit cmsschicago.org. That’s cmsschicago.org. This is living well with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. I’m Bill Klaproth. Thanks for listening.
Bill Klaproth: Hydration is just one part of a healthy lifestyle, especially for older adults. But staying hydrated often is tougher than it sounds. Here to talk with us about keeping hydrated during the summer is Amy Batti, a registered dietician with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. Amy thank you so much for your time today. So why is hydration so important, especially for seniors?
Amy Batti, RD: So, as we age, we become more vulnerable to lower water intake. That can lead to things like dehydration, which is one of the most frequent causes of dehydration among seniors. So, we really want to make sure we’re encouraging adequate water intake, especially during the summer months when we’re more susceptible to being dehydrated.
Bill: So, what are some of the signs and symptoms of dehydration?
Amy: So, the first sign is usually thirst. So, it occurs when about 1 to 2% loss of body water. Many older adults, seniors, however they have a diminished sense of thirst and they don’t necessarily know they’re becoming dehydrated. One easy sign to check for is the color of your urine. I know it’s not very desirable thing, but it should be a clear or pale yellow. Darker urine indicates that you’re not meeting fluid needs. Some vitamin supplements at high levels will also give the urine a dark color, but it’s also a sign of dehydration. Also, when loss of body water ranges from about 2 to 5%, symptoms can include dry mouth, flushed skin, headache, fatigue, and impaired physical performance. That’s another thing. Another indication of increased body temperature, increased pulse rate, and increased breathing. Other things, dizziness, weakness as I mentioned, and labored breathing. So, all these things are signs of dehydration.
Bill: Well that’s a great list and thanks for sharing that with us Amy. So, what is the general rule of thumb? How much water… I know this is a per-person and an individualized thing, but in general, how much water should a senior be drinking each day?
Amy: So, we want to make sure to get about 48 to 64 ounces per day. That’s about 6 to 8 eight-ounce glasses. Everyone is going to be different based on their body weight and composition. So, a smaller woman wouldn’t necessarily need as an older man. So, about that. We want to make sure we’re getting at least 48 ounces a day.
Bill: As I mentioned, just saying drink more water, it sounds easy, but sometimes it’s not. Do you have any tips for us? Some easy ways that a senior can increase their water intake throughout the day?
Amy: Yes. So, one thing I like to tell people is taking a bottle of water with you when you travel anywhere. Just keeping the bottle reminds you to stay hydrated. Refill it when it’s empty. Having a glass of water when you first wake up in the morning is a good routine to have. Then whenever you, if you don’t have a water bottle, whenever you walk by a water fountain, stop and take a sip. Make a habit of drinking water before and after and during any physical activity. So even light physical activity I would recommend to make sure you’re drinking water before and after. Then just schedule water breaks throughout the day. Most people take coffee breaks. So instead, make one or two of those a water break instead of coffee because coffee is also dehydrating. It offers some fluids, but it’s also a diuretic, so it can be dehydrating.
Bill: Let me ask you this Amy. Water is great, but it can be other things as well. Like half water, half juice. Fruit infused water, pre-flavored waters. Is that right?
Amy: Yes. So, things that count as water are water, of course. Milk actually contains a lot of water. There’s soup depending on what kind of soup that most of them are water based. Not the creamy ones. Fruit and vegetable juice. Gelatin, so like Jell-O’s. If you think about when they melt, they turn into fluid. There’s water in there. Decaffeinated soft drinks and tea and coffee. So those all contain water.
Bill: What about foods? You were mentioning foods. Fruits and vegetables can be hydrating as well. What are some foods to concentrate on?
Amy: So hydrating foods include watermelon, cucumber, citrus fruits, applesauce, or yogurt. A lot of these foods contain high water content. So good choices.
Bill: Well, those are great tips on hydrating foods. Are there any other ways to increase water intake Amy?
Amy: So, again with the fruits and vegetables, at one of our water bottle residences, we like to add fruit and vegetables to infuse our water. We’ll have big pitchers of infused water, which add nutrients and also help the water to taste better. Hopefully, encouraging them to drink more of it. So, doing that and just making sure the staff is always reminding them, because again they forget. Like I mentioned before, the water bottle is a good idea. Just to keep a reminder. Good tips keeping those hydrating snacks on hand.
Bill: Amy let me ask you this about outdoor exercise. I know a lot of seniors want to get out and stretch or do yoga or walk. They should probably do it earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon when the sun isn’t as hot. Is that right?
Amy: Exactly. So extra earlier in the morning or waiting ‘till the sun goes down. Those are probably the best times because midday is when it’s the hottest. You know we just had a heat wave over the weekend. It was… So, making sure to stay indoors. I would recommend doing indoor activities on days that it’s super hot to eliminate the risk of being dehydrated.
Bill: Amy if you could wrap it up for us. Do you have any other tips or things we need to know about as far as keeping hydrated during the summer?
Amy: So, again, my main recommendations would be keep a water bottle on hand, drink from the water fountain any time you pass them by, have scheduled water breaks throughout the day, and eating fruits, vegetables that are high in water content.
Bill: Well, Amy, thanks for the great tips. We appreciate it and thank you so much for you time. For more information, you can visit cmsschicago.org. That’s cmsschicago.org. This is living well with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. I’m Bill Klaproth. Thanks for listening.