Healthy Heart Tip : Hydration And Heart Health

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK

Hydration is an essential part of nutrition and can either benefit or impact your heart’s ability to work effectively. Studies have found that having adequate hydration is associated with reduced long-term risks for heart diseases.

Did you know that over 66% of the UK population don’t drink enough water? With Nutrition and Hydration week (11th-18th March) coming up, we are sharing some information on the importance of hydration and your cardiovascular system.

Importance of being hydrated

Water makes up over half (60%) of your bodyweight and fluids are critical for good health and heart health. Hydration is when you drink more fluids than your body loses.
Being hydrated helps your heart pump blood more easily through the blood vessels and to your muscles. This means that your muscles, including your heart don’t have to work as hard to achieve the same results.

Risks of being dehydrated

Dehydration occurs when the body loses more water than it takes in. Fluids can be lost through sweat, urination, tears, vomiting or diarrhoea. When these are not replaced your body may feel tired, you might feel thirsty, have a dry mouth, have dark coloured urine and suffer from headaches.
Being dehydrated means that your heart needs to beat faster to pump your blood around the body. This is because your blood reduces in volume and thickens which will impact your circulation, as well as increase your heart rate and blood pressure. This increases your risk of heart diseases!

Sources of hydration

On average an adult needs 6-8 glasses or 1.5-2 litres of fluid a day. If it is a hot temperature or you carry out physical activity, you’ll need more. Drinking water is the best way to remain hydrated, however other non-alcoholic drinks such as milk, juice and herbal teas can also hydrate you. Food such as fruits and vegetables can also help to hydrate you, with around 20% of your bodies water intake per day coming from foods like these.

Heart Research UK
Proud to stand out from the crowd, Heart Research UK is the charity dedicated to your heart. They inspire and invest in pioneering medical research, ground-breaking training and education, and in communities to improve their heart health for themselves. For over 50 years they have driven advancements in the prevention, treatment and cure of heart disease to benefit patients as soon as possible.