Can Drinking A Lot Of Water Lower Your Blood Sugar

The Impact Of Water On Diabetes

When a person doesnt drink an adequate amount of water, the glucose in the persons bloodstream becomes more concentrated. And this brings about higher levels of blood glucose. Both mild, as well as severe dehydration, might exert a prominent impact on sugar levels.

Even a mild dehydration level, something a person might not even feel could simply leave the glucose levels 50 to 100 mg/dL higher as compared to when a person drinks enough water. If a person is constantly dehydrated day after day, he or she may even be compensating with greater insulin levels as compared to the requirements when the body was getting the water it required.

More serious levels of dehydration, alternatively, might drive blood glucose very high very rapidly. For instance, recurrent vomiting resulting due to food poisoning or a stomach virus may give rise to very abrupt high blood glucose levels. But following intravenous delivery of fluids at the emergency room, the person would likely notice a fall in his or her blood sugar rapidly towards standard levels without extra insulin.

To summarize the simplest problem of serious dehydration, results in an intense concentration of glucose in the bloodstream, and then rapidly getting diluted with the help of enough fluids.

What Should Be Your Daily Water Intake

One suffering from diabetes must keep in mind to have zero-calorie or low-calorie drinks and keep oneself hydrated. And water comes as a winner here, as it has no calories and thus help you flush out the toxins from your body. But now the most important question is, how much water must be consumed by a diabetic patient? The answer to this question is 13 cups of water for an adult man and 9 cups of water for an average adult woman. Approximately 1.2 liters of water must be the intake quantity.

Water And Blood Sugar

Heres some great news: drinking water can help you lower your blood sugar. In fact, being dehydrated can actually increase your blood sugar and can lead to hyperglycemia. One reason for this is because a huge component of your blood is water.

When you are adequately hydrated, your blood contains the appropriate amount of water. When you are dehydrated, your blood volume decreases, making your blood sugar more concentrated. Put more simply with less water in your circulation, your blood sugar goes up.

Drinking water throughout the day to avoid dehydration can help you avoid these blood sugar spikes that can potentially lead to prediabetes or, ultimately, type 2 diabetes.

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How Much Water Should You Drink Each Day

For most people, simply drinking water when you feel thirsty is adequate, according to recent research.

You may need more than 6 to 8 glasses of water a day if:

• Youre taking a medication that increases your bodys urine output
• You exercise intensely, especially for those involved in endurance training
• Youre in an extremely hot weather
• Youve recently experienced diarrhea or vomiting and need to replenish
• Youre pregnant or breastfeeding

You may need to limit your water intake if:

• You have certain health conditions, including kidney, liver or heart failure
• Youre experiencing symptoms of over-hydration
• Youre taking medications that cause water retention
• Youre taking other medications, including some antidepressants and opiates
• Your doctor has instructed you to reduce water intake for any reason

Talk to your doctor about your personal water consumption goals and concerns!

Exercise For Sugar Detox

But there is a way that exercise can help with a sugar cleanse. When you eat sugar, your body does several things with it. It uses what it needs immediately for energy, converts some of what’s left over to glycogen and stores it in the liver and muscles, then takes anything left after that and turns it into fat to store in your adipose â or fat â tissue.

This is helpful to know because your body calls on the sugar in your blood and the glycogen in your muscles for energy during exercise. In other words, if you’ve eaten too much sugar, exercise can help you do a sugar cleanse by burning off that extra sugar. What’s even more fascinating is that the rate at which you burn off the sugar increases with the increasing intensity of the exercise.

A report published in theJournal of Physiology in March 2012 points out that, during low-intensity aerobic exercise, your body uses 10 to 15 percent of the sugar and glycogen, but if you increase your speed, you can ramp that number up to 70 to 100 percent. So, in a way, you have the power to speed up your sugar detox by exercising harder.

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Foods That Help Manage Diabetes

If you have diabetes, you should pay attention to what you eat. Your diet can affect your blood sugar levels. Experts recommend adapting your diet to follow basic guidelines:

• Include fruits and vegetables
• Include lean meats and plant-based sources of protein
• Reduce the amount of foods with added sugar
• Avoid highly processed foods

What you drink can have as much of an effect on your blood sugar as what you eat. Many beverages contain a lot of added sugar. Sodas, sports drinks, and many fruit juices are all very sugary and can cause blood sugar spikes. Alcohol also has high sugar content and can be detrimental to your health if you have diabetes.

Defining Blood Sugar Level

Often dreaded as the purest form of Diabetes, blood sugar level does not mean the same in general. Then what does blood sugar level define? Let us simplify it for you. The blood sugar level is the concentration of glucose in the blood of living beings. It is something very natural.

An average human being of 70 kgs has 4 grams of glucose or sugar in his blood. It is very important to keep the tissues and the human brain functioning smoothly. But in case, it goes uneven the risk factors start hovering around. An increased level of your blood sugar level makes you diabetic or prone to diabetes. A clinical blood test can tell whether you are diabetic or not.

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Your Kidneys And Sugar

When it comes to sugar, you hear a lot about insulin and the role of the pancreas in maintaining the balance of sugar in your body, but the kidneys don’t seem to get as much attention, even though they’re an important piece of the puzzle too. To understand why drinking a lot of water won’t flush out the sugar in your body, you need to know how the kidneys work and the role they play in maintaining the level of sugar in your blood.

One of your kidneys’ main functions is to filter the blood. They take every ounce of your blood into complicated filtering mechanisms, pull out waste, toxins and extra water to make the urine that will leave your body and preserve the good stuff so your body can use it.

Like anything else, all of the glucose that’s in the blood gets filtered through the kidneys. The kidneys take the glucose they need for their own immediate energy needs and then reabsorb any of the remaining sugar and put it back into the blood to try to conserve it. After all, the body knows that glucose is a vital source of energy, and it doesn’t want to dump it out of the body for no reason.

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Water For Diabetes Mellitus

Drinking water is good advice for anyone to follow. For general health, most experts recommend drinking 46 cups of water per day. Drinking water has many benefits, including:

• Carrying nutrients and oxygen to your cells
• Cushioning joints
• Protecting organs and tissues
• Regulating body temperature

If you have diabetes, water is especially important. Its an ideal beverage for people with diabetes since it doesnt add sugar to your bloodstream. Your water consumption can also affect your blood sugar levels more generally.

When your blood sugar rises, your body tries to get rid of the excess glucose. Without insulin to reduce the sugar levels, though, your system will process the sugar into your urine, and you will get rid of it by going to the bathroom. When this happens, you can become dehydrated due to fluid loss. Drinking water will replace what youve lost through urination.

Dehydration can lead to higher blood sugar as well. If your blood volume drops due to dehydration, the concentration of sugar in your blood will increase. Drinking water throughout the day will prevent dehydration, so youre better able to manage blood sugar.

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How Dehydration Affects Blood Sugar Levels

People suffering from diabetes are often prone to dehydration. This is known as Diabetes Mellitus. This happens because the increased levels of blood sugar lead to the lower levels of hydration in your body. In that case, you should always keep in mind to refrain from too much salt intake because salt soaks the moisture level from a human body keeping it dehydrated. Thus, in turn, the dehydration disturbs your blood sugar level.

Too Many Caffeinated Beverages

Drinking a cup of black coffee or a coffee with a small amount of cream can actually bring some health benefits, but it’s the fancy coffee drinks and other forms of caffeine that may affect your blood sugar.

“Energy drinks or drinks that contain caffeine may give you a jolt of energy, but it often comes in the form of sugar, caffeine, and other additives,” says D’Angelo. “Consuming these ingredients can cause heart rate disturbances, disrupt sleep, increase heart rate, and increase blood pressure. Beverages like these can also contain an unhealthy amount of sugar, which can cause blood sugar to spike and leave your body wanting more after you drink one.”

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Water Consumption And Diabetes

We all have gotten the message that drinking water is a good thing for everyone, not just people with diabetes.

Appropriate water consumption helps keep our body temperature in the normal range adds lubrication for our joints helps with eliminating wastes through sweat, bowel movements , and urination improves cognition and motor function And because water contains zero calories, it helps with reducing calorie intake especially when you use water in place of a caloric beverage.

For diabetes management, you will often hear your diabetes educator advise you to drink water if your blood sugar is above target. The recommendation is to drink 8oz of water over an hour period to help re-hydrate your body after an above-target blood sugar. In one sense it can help lower blood sugar in the case of dehydration. If youre dehydrated, your blood sugar may trend higher.

When To See A Doctor

According to the University of Michigan, blood sugar levels of 300 mg/dL or more can be dangerous. They recommend calling a doctor if you have two readings in a row of 300 or more.

See your doctor if you have consistently high blood sugar levels. Symptoms of this include:

• increased thirst
• high levels of sugar in urine

Ask your doctor how often to check your blood sugar and about your ideal blood sugar levels.

If you dont currently see a doctor who specializes in diabetes, known as an endocrinologist, you can find one by searching the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists website.

You can find a certified diabetes educator by visiting the American Diabetes Associations website and searching by zip code.

Summary

Talk to your doctor if you have consistently high blood sugar readings or symptoms of chronic hyperglycemia.

Checking your blood sugar and then treating hyperglycemia early will help prevent any complications.

Health problems can arise when someone has high blood sugar regularly and without treatment.

Examples of complications include:

• nerve damage, called diabetic neuropathy, that may affect sensations in the feet and hands
• diabetic retinopathy, or damage to the blood vessels in the eyes that affects vision
• increased risks for kidney problems
• increased risks for heart problems

Taking steps to keep your blood sugar at target levels can help to minimize the likelihood that these complications will occur.

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How To Stay Hydrated If Youre Managing Type 2 Diabetes

Even if scientists still have questions about how dehydration affects the body, staying hydrated is clearly important for good health especially if you have type 2 diabetes.

So how can you make sure youre getting enough water to manage diabetes? Rizza and Simos offer the following tips.

Have some salt but not too much. Too much salt can be bad for blood pressure, Rizza says, but you do need some to maintain proper hydration. When you eat salt, notes the U.S. National Library of Medicine, you help stabilize your electrolytes, which are charged substances that regulate essential functions in your body, helping you stay hydrated. If you already have high blood pressure, talk with your doctor about how much salt to consume.

Check your blood glucose levels in extreme heat, and drink water if they are elevated. When its hot, its easier to become dehydrated, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Staying well hydrated can help reduce your blood glucose levels, which helps you manage the hormone insulin, Simos explains. And make sure that your blood glucose test strips and insulin are stored in a cool, dry place, she says, so that they dont lose their potency and accuracy.

Reach for hydrating snacks if youre hungry. For example, choose a cold piece of melon or a few frozen grapes, Simos says. Drinking a glass of water isnt the only way to get your fix.

Tips For Drinking More Water

If you donât like the taste of plain water, there are several easy hacks you can try to increase your fluid intake, such as:

• Sip carbonated or sparkling water instead of plain. Many naturally flavored sparkling waters provide a bit of fruity flavor without added sugar or artificial sweeteners.
• Add sliced fruit, such as lemons, limes, cucumbers, or strawberries to your water.
• When fresh mint is available, infuse water with the leaves and stems for a hint of mint refreshment.
• Cinnamon9 and powdered probiotics10 may also help with glucose regulation. Make a mug of herbal or black tea and drop in a cinnamon stick, or whisk in powdered probiotics into any tea or coffee drink.
• Tea and coffee count toward your total daily water intake. Just keep an eye on your caffeine intake, as some people can experience increased blood sugar from caffeine.
• Fruits and vegetables contain water as well, which also counts toward your total daily intake. Try low-glycemic produce such as celery, lettuce, cucumbers, watercress, zucchini, strawberries, tomatoes, bell peppers, cauliflower, and cabbage.

Try drinking more water before, during, and after meals, and adding in more water-packed fruits and veggies to your diet.

Regulating blood sugar can be done at home with a few tweaks to your daily habits.

It starts with adapting a mindset of healthy eating, drinking, and living. Cheers!

References

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Can Dehydration Affect Type 2 Diabetes Risk

Although dehydration can lead to serious health issues, not much research has looked at whether chronic dehydration and the associated higher blood sugar may increase the risk of prediabetes and full-blown type 2 diabetes.

There have been a variety of things dehydration has been suggested to contribute to, but not diabetes, Rizza says.

But there may be a connection, says Anna Simos, MPH, a certified diabetes care and education specialist with the Stanford Health Care Diabetes Education and Prevention Program in Palo Alto, California. Indeed, according to a previous study, which monitored healthy adults over nine years, peoples self-reported water intake was inversely associated with a risk of developing high blood sugar. This means that people who reported drinking less than ½ a liter of water per day were more at risk of elevated blood sugar than people who reported more than 1 liter.

Scientists theorize that dehydration can lead to an increase in the hormone vasopressin, which prompts the kidneys to retain water and the liver to produce blood sugar, potentially affecting the bodys ability to regulate insulin over time.

The bottom line: More research is needed to fully understand the relationship between dehydration and diabetes, but hydration likely keeps blood glucose levels a little more stable, Simos says.

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Results Of Rct Comparing Low Mineralized Water With Bicarbonate

The first study compared consumption of 1.4 L of a bicarbonate-rich water with a content of 102 mg/L magnesium for four weeks with an uncarbonated low mineralized water . In spite of the small sample size, the trial found a small but significant difference for serum fructosamin for the bicarbonate- and magnesium-rich water compared to the low mineralized water. Furthermore, the glucose tolerance test showed a significantly better result in the bicarbonate-rich water group, but there was no significant difference for the short-term glycemic parameters FPG and fasting insulin.

The other study investigated a bicarbonate-rich water with an even higher concentration of magnesium and also showed a significant better result in the long-term glycemic parameter glycoalbumin compared to low mineralized water and no significance for the short-term glycemic parameters FPG, fasting insulin and the calculated HOMA-IR.

As shown below, the positive results may well be due to the high magnesium content. However, it is also apparent that the positive significant results were found only in longer-term glycemic parameters, indicating that the effects from water, especially bicarbonate-rich water, may be too small to detect them in the short-term parameters FPG, fasting insulin and HOMA-IR, but large enough to result in a moderate effect in longer terms.

4.3.1. Effect of Bicarbonate as a Supplement

4.3.2. Effect of Mineral Rich Water in an Animal Model

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