Hydration During Pregnancy
Hydration is important for everyone, but it’s essential during pregnancy. In fact, water is the means by which many physiological reactions occur in the body. This is why, in this article, we’ll talk about hydration during pregnancy.
It’s important to highlight that during the summer or warmer weather, the risk of suffering from dehydration increases. In normal cases, this can be a terrible thing. However, in the case of pregnant women, two lives are at risk, instead of one.
Water requirements
You probably know that water is the most efficient drink to keep people hydrated. In fact, normal people should drink between 1.5 to 2 liters per day. However, women’s water requirements increase when they become pregnant. During certain circumstances, they may even need to drink three liters of water per day.
Notwithstanding, water intake during pregnancy isn’t just about drinking water. In fact, a study from the magazine BMC states that the water from different foods helps women stay hydrated.
In order to be well hydrated, avoid alcohol intake
You probably already know that you should avoid alcohol intake during pregnancy. This is because of two main reasons. First of all, since this type of drink causes a diuretic effect, it modifies our hydric balance and may cause dehydration.
On the other hand, certain studies have shown that alcohol intake during pregnancy may cause fetus malformation and problems in the fetus’s development. In fact, this is what an article from the magazine Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology states. What’s more, other studies suggest that alcohol intake during adolescence may also influence the fetus’s development during pregnancy.
Soft drinks and hydration during pregnancy
Nowadays, people drink a lot of sweet, soft drinks. However, this habit is quite harmful to their health. This is mostly because the amount of sugar they contain causes an impact on their metabolism, which can lead to different pathologies, such as diabetes.
Actually, this is even worse in the case of pregnant women, because they can already suffer from gestational diabetes. Even though being overweight is a risk factor, sweet, soft drinks intake during pregnancy can influence as well.
It’s very important to highlight that the best way to stay hydrated during pregnancy is by drinking water. In addition, you can have whole-fat milk, which can relieve heartburn. However, you should never replace water with other types of drinks.
In the case of women who are used to have soft drinks, they can replace them with sparkling water. Remember that it shouldn’t contain sugar. Besides, if they drink it really cold, it can be quite useful to overcome the heat women experience during the first months of pregnancy. Furthermore, it’s very refreshing during warm weather.
Hydration during pregnancy
As we’ve mentioned before, staying hydrated is essential to have a healthy pregnancy, for both the mother and the fetus. In order to do this, the best choice is to drink mineral water and to avoid sweet soft drinks and alcohol.
Besides, as a general rule, specialists don’t recommend regular fruit juice intake. This is because they contain simple sugars, but they don’t have fiber in them. Therefore, they’re able to increase the likelihood of developing gestational diabetes.
On the contrary, it’s advisable to eat whole fruits. This is because this type of food concentrates high amounts of water in them, which helps to stay hydrated. Finally, you should bear in mind that drinking a glass of water before every meal will help you hydrate properly.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Zhou Y, Zhu X, Qin Y, Li Y, Zhang M, Liu W, Huang H, Xu Y. Association between total water intake and dietary intake of pregnant and breastfeeding women in China: a cross-sectional survey. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2019 May 15;19(1):172. doi: 10.1186/s12884-019-2301-z. PMID: 31092215; PMCID: PMC6521377.
- Dejong K, Olyaei A, Lo JO. Alcohol Use in Pregnancy. Clin Obstet Gynecol. 2019 Mar;62(1):142-155. doi: 10.1097/GRF.0000000000000414. PMID: 30575614; PMCID: PMC7061927.
