It’s the middle of summer, it’s relatively warm outside and you’re working hard inside. Even though you may not be feeling the scorching heat from outside – or even if you’re feeling cold from the air conditioner, it’s essential to stay hydrated. It’s very easy to immerse yourself in work and lost track of time, but its critical to keep that drink next to you and have some from time to time. Funnily enough, a statement such as “Make sure you drink plenty during your workday” will raise a lot of questions. However, let’s take it step by step and start answering those doubts you may have.  

Why should you stay hydrated?

Performance, alertness and concentration. Staying hydrated will affect these three attributes that you need throughout your day at work. If your job involves a lot of decision making, you can see why it’s important to have a drink nearby. Additionally, something that many don’t know is that an air-conditioned space speeds up the loss of moisture in the body, hence, the consumption of liquids will help offset this. *

What should you drink?

There’s a variety of drinks on the menu. Black teas, herbal teas, juices, coffee, soft drinks and water. Water should be your first choice. It’s natural, it keeps your body at a normal temperature, it -lubricates and cushions joints and gets rid of body wastes. Teas and coffees are also good as they are mainly made up of water – but you should be careful with the amount of caffeine intake you have. This is because caffeine is diuretic, therefore it will affect your body to lose more fluids. Experts suggest that you don’t take more than four cups of coffee, with one or two being considered ideal. Furthermore, teas are preferred to coffees, with white, green and herbal teas being strongly recommended due to the lack of caffeine. Freshly squeezed juices are also a good idea but try staying away from juice packs as they tend to have added sugar in them. A mistake that many make is that they consumer a lot of energy drinks or soft drinks to boost their energy. Whilst being high in sugars and containing caffeine, they are not a very good option. 

How much water should you drink?

There isn’t a fixed amount as everyone’s body is different. However, it’s a fact that your body will require more liquid consumption if the temperature is particularly hot, if you’re being physically active or if you’re feeling sick. According to the Institute of Medicine, men should consume 3 litres of fluid a day whilst women are advised to drink 2.2 litres per day. This doesn’t mean that you’ve got to have that respective amount of water every day – but it is suggested that water makes up the majority of the consumed amount. 

Signs of dehydration

Keep in mind that our bodies are 60% made up of water. If you have a dry mouth, feeling tired, or experiencing headaches or have a lack of concentration, you should drink more! 

*Officeworkerhealth.com