Alcohol’s diuretic effects mean it’s difficult to avoid experiencing some level of dehydration from drinking. However, you may be able to minimize its severity by following a few simple tips. When you lose too much water without properly replacing it, you become dehydrated. Dehydration can cause mild symptoms like headache, dry mouth, dizziness, and fatigue, or severe issues like damage to the brain, heart, kidneys, and even death (1).
- Alcohol does not create the effects of dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and vitamin deficiency that we grew up believing it did.
- With less vasopressin in your system, you may experience diuresis (more frequent urination) while your body loses more fluids.
- Vasopressin is an antidiuretic hormone (ADH) that causes the kidneys to hold on to fluid.
- Apart from intoxication – which is well characterized for obvious reasons – it turns out that alcohol’s effects on the body are quite complicated, elusive, and variably dependent on several factors.
Therefore, it’s best to moderate your intake of energy drinks and alcoholic beverages and pair these drinks with plenty of water to stay hydrated. Alcohol-induced dehydration is more likely to occur if an individual drinks alcohol on an empty stomach or does not drink enough non-alcoholic fluids while consuming alcohol. People who are already at risk of dehydration should avoid or limit their alcohol consumption. A lower-alcohol beer, if you don’t does alcohol dehydrate you drink too many, will be less dehydrating than wine or hard liquor, since beer generally has a lower alcohol content. No matter what you choose to drink, drinking slowly and savoring your drink is a good way to moderate your total alcohol consumption and minimize alcohol’s dehydrating effects. Because a beer — consumed slowly — is the least dehydrating, it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that liquor is always the most dehydrating alcohol.
Water vs. Alcohol: How Do They Compare?
As important as alcohol content may be, even more important is how much you drink in a given sitting. Drink too many beers too quickly, and you’ll end up as dehydrated as you would taking a shot at the bar. “Drinking one beer over the course of a dinner will not increase your blood alcohol levels as much as if you drank four beers in the same time frame,” says Rumsey. If you are sick with a stomach virus and experience symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting it can be hard to keep down food and beverages. Your fluid losses may surpass your fluid intake which can increase the risk of becoming dehydrated. Fever can increase the risk of dehydration by increasing fluid loss.
This can cause symptoms of dehydration such as thirst, fatigue, and headache. Some people forget to drink when hungry, which can impact the amount of fluids they consume. Without proper fluid intake, your losses can exceed your intake, which can increase the risk of dehydration. Dehydration occurs when there is an imbalance between fluid intake and fluid loss. You lose fluids when you urinate, sweat, breathe, and have bowel movements.
What Are the Ways to Rehydrate the Body After Drinking?
Excessive consumption of alcohol can result in dehydration and can cause damage to several systems and functions in the body. It is very important for an individual to be aware and know about the signs and symptoms of alcohol-induced dehydration and how to avoid it. Alcohol-induced dehydration is likely to occur when a person drinks alcohol on a completely empty stomach or does not drink enough fluids while consuming alcohol. People already at high risk of dehydration should limit their consumption of alcohol.
