Did you know that 80% of your body is made up of water? Our bodies can't function properly without replenishing the water we lose through digestion, breathing and sweating. While a normal person can replenish the missing fluids by eating and drinking foods with water, for a person with Short Bowel Person this is not so simple. Likewise a person with an ileostomy will not retain fluids because they are missing their colon which is the part of your body that absorbs the most fluids your body needs.
I have always loved a good cold glass of water and used to drink lots of it before I had Short Bowel Syndrome but I would still suffer from problems with cramping. There were many nights I would wake up in the middle of the night with lower leg cramps that would make me jump out of bed to stretch them out. I would chalk them up to exercising. I never realized that since I was missing 90-95% of my large intestines that I was suffering from chronic dehydration. Since I have had SBS and went on & off TPN and now on life-long IV Hydration supplementation I am more aware of what my body needs and how it reacts to less fluids. Long term (chronic) dehydration can cause problems for your body such as headaches, fatigue, not peeing or feeling lightheaded. If you aren't flushing your kidneys out you can be more prone to kidney stones (if you've ever had one, you will never want one again!). Along with infusing IV hydration, I drink a salt mixture called Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) that allows me to absorb more fluids in my small intestine. It's a daily effort I have to make to stay healthy and free of cramping & fatigue.
ThriveRx has an upcoming webinar about dehydration called "Ask the Expert: Hydration Matters on Thursday March 8th at 1pm est. You will learn the symptoms of dehydration and how ORS helps the body. You can register at this link: ThriveRx Hydration Matters
Keeping our bodies fluids and functions are important to keeping us Living, Loving and Laughing!
Michelle
(if link doesn't work you can always register here - ThriveRx
