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Can Dehydration Cause High Blood Pressure? A Research-Backed Examination

By Dr. Nikita Toshi +2 more

Key Highlights:

  • Dehydration can lead to changes in blood pressure, both low and high
  • The body’s hydration level is essential for regulating blood pressure
  • Certain medications for high blood pressure can cause dehydration
  • Maintaining proper daily water intake is crucial for overall health
  • Additional lifestyle choices, such as diet and exercise, can also affect blood pressure and hydration levels

Introduction

Dehydration and high blood pressure are common health problems. They can both harm your body in different ways. Hence, it’s crucial to understand their link and how they work together. In this article, we’ll examine the tie between dehydration and blood pressure. We’ll study the evidence behind their connection and offer useful tips for good hydration and blood pressure levels.

We’re going to talk about what dehydration is, the basics of high blood pressure, and how these two relate. We’ll also look at how medicine can cause dehydration, how much water you should drink daily, and how lifestyle choices impact hydration and blood pressure. Finally, we’ll cover when to see a doctor and answer common questions about the topic.

Can Dehydration Cause High Blood Pressure

Did you know?

  • Dehydration can lead to complications such as altered mental status, renal failure, and lactic acidosis. source: NCBI 
  • In patients with dehydration and severe hyponatremia, rapid volume repletion may cause central pontine myelinolysis (CPM). source:  NCBI 
  • In elderly patients, fatigue and missed drinks between meals are predictors of dehydration. source: NCBI
  • Serum and plasma osmolality tests are commonly used to diagnose dehydration. source: NCBI 
  • Excess pure water loss through the skin, lungs, and kidneys can cause dehydration. source: NCBI 

Understanding Dehydration

So what exactly is dehydration? Is it just a dry mouth now and then, or is it more serious?

1. What is Dehydration?

Dehydration happens when your body loses more fluids than it gets. This leads to a lack of water and electrolytesneeded for normal body functions. If you don’t replace the lost fluids, your body starts to dehydrate. This condition can be very harmful, especially for young children and older adults who are more at risk.

2. Causes of Dehydration

Multiple factors can lead to dehydration:

  • Not drinking enough fluid due to illness, being busy or not having clean drinking water
  • Heavy diarrhoea and vomiting
  • Fever, which often makes you lose more fluid through sweat
  • Exercising in hot, humid weather without making up for the lost fluids
  • Peeing more than usual, which could be due to unknown diabetes, certain drugs like diuretics and blood pressure medicines, or drinking alcohol

3. Symptoms of Dehydration in Adults

Knowing the signs of dehydration is key. The early warning signs might vary depending on your age. Common signs in adults include:

  • Extreme thirst
  • Peeling less often
  • Dark pee
  • Tiredness
  • Feeling dizzy
  • Confusion

4. Symptoms of Dehydration in Infants and Young Children

The symptoms of dehydration in infants and young kids can comprise:

  • Dry mouth and tongue
  • No tears while crying
  • No wet diapers for three hours
  • Sunken eyes and cheeks
  • A sunken fontanel (soft spot) on the skull’s top
  • Being super lazy or grumpy

5. Preventing Dehydration

To keep yourself from getting dehydrated, drink plenty of fluids and eat fruits and vegetables that have a lot of water. It’s important to drink more water particularly when it’s hot, if you do a tough workout or if you’re not feeling well. Pay attention to your body and ensure you drink enough fluids.

Staying hydrated is very critical as dehydration can reduce the blood volume and consequently your blood pressure may fall too low and when left untreated low blood pressure can damage the heart or brain.

Dr. Ashish Bajaj, M.B.B.S., M.D. in Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology

High Blood Pressure: The Basics

Blood pressure is the force your blood puts on the walls of your arteries and veins. Let’s dig into the basics of high blood pressure or hypertension.

1. Definition of High Blood Pressure (hypertension)

High blood pressure, which goes by the name hypertension, is when the force of your blood pushing against your blood vessel walls is higher than the normal range 120/80 mm HgIt affects about one in three American adults.

2. Causes and Risk Factors

Many things can lead to high blood pressure:

  • Your genes: Having family members with hypertension increases your risk
  • Getting older: The risk of high blood pressure goes up over time
  • Ethnicity: African Americans are more at risk than other racial groups
  • Being overweight or obese
  • Using tobacco
  • Eating too much salt
  • Not getting enough exercise
  • Undergoing a lot of stress
  • Drinking alcohol

3. Symptoms and Complications

Often, you can’t tell if you have high blood pressure. But if it’s not treated, it can cause serious problems like stroke, heart attack, kidney damage, and loss of sight.

4. Prevention Measures

To keep from having high blood pressure, try to make healthy lifestyle choices like:

  • Eating healthy food
  • Doing regular exercise
  • Keeping a healthy weight
  • Limiting your alcohol intake
  • Managing stress
  • Quitting smoking

In my experience I have found that dehydration is always accompanied by loss of fluid from blood vessels which leads to a low volume state called hypovolemic shock and is always accompanied by low blood pressure.

Dr. M.G. Kartheeka, MBBS, MD(Pediatrics)

The Link Between Dehydration and Blood Pressure

Let’s look at how dehydration might change blood pressure. It can lead to both low and high blood pressure.

1. How Dehydration Affects Blood Pressure

Dehydration can change blood pressure in various ways:

  • If your blood volume decreases because of dehydration, you can have low blood pressure as there won’t be enough fluid in your blood vessels for your body to work right
  • When you’re dehydrated, your body lets out a hormone called vasopressin. It makes your blood vessels tighten and tells your kidneys to keep more water. These actions can hike up your blood pressure

2. Dehydration and Low Blood Pressure

If dehydration causes a large drop in your blood volume, you can get a type of low blood pressure called hypotension. With less blood volume, your blood can’t reach all your body tissue the way it should. Very severe dehydration can lead to a very dangerous condition called hypovolemic shock.

3. Dehydration and High Blood Pressure

Dehydration can also cause high blood pressure, known as hypertension. Your body lets out vasopressin when you’re dehydrated, which tells your kidneys to keep more water and makes your blood vessels tighten. Both of these can raise your blood pressure.

4. The Role of Body Hydration in Regulating Blood Pressure

Hydration plays a key part in controlling blood pressure. You need plenty of fluids to keep your blood volume right and make sure your organs and tissues work properly. Staying well-hydrated can help avoid both low and high blood pressure and improve your overall health.

The Role of Medication

While medicines and drugs play an important role in handling high blood pressure, some medicines can cause dehydration.

1. How Certain Medications Can Cause Dehydration

Some medicines, including diuretics and certain other high blood pressure medications, can cause you to pee more, leading to dehydration. 

2. Blood Pressure Medications That Cause Dehydration

Some blood pressure drugs, like angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs), may cause dehydration as a side effect. If you take these drugs, you must drink enough fluid to keep yourself well-hydrated and control your blood pressure.

3. Managing Medication-induced Dehydration

If you take drugs that might cause dehydration, talk with your healthcare provider about how much fluid you should drink each day to stay well hydrated. They might suggest that you drink more fluids or perhaps alter your drug routine if needed.

How to Stay Hydrated

Keeping hydrated is key to all-around health and managing blood pressure. Do you know how much water you should drink each day?

1. How Much Water Should You Drink Each Day?

Every adult woman should drink 91 ounces (or 2.7 litres) of water daily and every adult man 125 ounces (or 3.7 litres), says the National Academy of Sciences. This includes both drinks and water-rich foods. That said, a person’s water needs may change based on things like their age, sex, weight, overall health, how much they exercise and the drugs they take.

2. Factors Affecting Daily Water Intake

Your water needs depend on many things, including:

  • Age and sex
  • Weight and general health
  • How much physical activity you do
  • The weather and climate conditions
  • Any specific drugs you’re taking

3. What Counts as Hydration: Different Sources of Water

Besides plain water, you can get your daily fluid intake from other drinks and foods:

  • Water with fruit slices (like lemon or cucumber)
  • Sparkling water with no sugar
  • Smoothies made from fruits and vegetables
  • Herbal tea with no caffeine
  • Milk
  • Soups with low-sodium

4. Drinks to Limit or Avoid

You should control or avoid certain drinks to manage high blood pressure or dehydration, such as:

  • Sugary sodas and energy drinks
  • Flavoured coffee drinks
  • Alcohol
  • Sports drinks, except if you need them to replace electrolytes

The Impact of Lifestyle Choices on Blood Pressure and Hydration

Your diet, how much you exercise and other lifestyle choices can affect your high blood pressure and hydration levels.

1. The Role of Diet and Exercise in Managing Hypertension and Dehydration

Eating well and doing regular exercise can help you both stay hydrated and manage your blood pressure. Go for food and drinks rich in water to keep your fluids up and eat a balanced diet to manage your overall health and blood pressure.

2. Smart Dietary Choices to Stay Hydrated and Manage Blood Pressure

Try to eat food and drinks rich in water, like:

  • Fruits and vegetables
  • Whole grains
  • Dairy low in fat
  • Lean proteins
  • Nuts and seeds

Avoid foods high in sodium and bad fats, which can raise your blood pressure.

3. Physical Activities and their Impact on Hydration and Blood Pressure

Doing regular physical activity can help keep a healthy blood pressure by making the heart stronger and improving circulation. Try to do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of strong aerobic activity per week, plus muscle-strengthening activities on two or more days per week.

Remember to stay well hydrated before, during, and after exercise, and pay attention to your body’s thirst cues to know when to drink more.

When to Seek Medical Attention

You must know how to spot the signs of dehydration and high blood pressure and get medical help when needed.

1. Recognizing the Symptoms of Severe Dehydration

Severe dehydration needs to be treated right away. Get professional help if you or a loved one presents:

  • Diarrhea that lasts 24 hours or more
  • Acting out of control or confused plus sleeping too much or doing too little
  • Can’t hold down fluids
  • Having bloody or black stools

Whenever you spot symptoms of low BP in an otherwise healthy person, ORS oral rehydration solution can be given immediately. It is important to prepare ORS with cooled and boiled drinking water or otherwise safe filtered drinking water. Follow the steps given on the pack. Keep checking blood pressure and blood sugar in people with hypertension and diabetes when managing low BP symptoms. Consult a doctor after giving initial care at home to avoid any complications.

2. When to Consult a Doctor for Dehydration

Get in touch with your healthcare provider if you:

  • Have had diarrhoea for 24 hours or more
  • Are overly grumpy or confused
  • Can’t keep down fluids
  • See bloody or black stools
  • Feel weak and dizzy

3. When to Consult a Doctor for High Blood Pressure

Reach out to your healthcare provider if you see high blood pressure readings again and again or have symptoms tied to high blood pressure (like severe headaches, chest pain or trouble breathing). They might suggest changes in your lifestyle, drugs or other steps to help you manage your blood pressure.

Conclusion

It’s critical to understand how dehydration and high blood pressure are linked for your total health. While dehydration can vary your blood pressure, it’s key to make sure you drink enough fluids every day to regulate your blood pressure and cut down on health problems that are related.

Make it a goal to stay hydrated, along with other healthy lifestyle choices like eating a balanced diet and getting regular physical activity. By controlling your hydration and blood pressure, you’ll be in a better place to keep up your general health and wellness.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can not drinking enough water cause high blood pressure?

Not directly. But if you’re dehydrated a lot, it can be harder for your body to keep enough blood volume. This can narrow your blood vessels and raise your blood pressure as a result.

Does blood pressure go up when dehydrated?

Yes, when you’re dehydrated, your blood pressure could go up as a counter-effect to manage low BP. This happens due to the release of a hormone involved in keeping water.

How much does dehydration affect blood pressure?

It’s hard to say for sure how much dehydration can change blood pressure. However, being dehydrated from mild to severe can cause changes in blood pressure that might harm you.

What are the symptoms of dehydration and high blood pressure?

Signs of dehydration are severe thirst, peeing less often, dark peeing, feeling worn out, being confused or feeling dizzy. High blood pressure usually has no clear signs. But with very high blood pressure readings, people might have severe headaches, chest pain, hard time breathing, throwing up, anxiety, confusion, eyesight changes, and dizziness.

Can other drinks apart from water help in lowering blood pressure?

Yes, drinks like beet juice, tomato juice, pomegranate juice, cranberry juice, low-fat milk, and tea might help keep or even lower blood pressure. However, you should drink these in addition to the daily water you need to drink, and make sure to ask your healthcare provider about what you should eat and drink based on your health and any restrictions.

Disclaimer: The information provided here is for educational/awareness purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical treatment by a healthcare professional and should not be relied upon to diagnose or treat any medical condition. The reader should consult a registered medical practitioner to determine the appropriateness of the information before consuming any medication. PharmEasy does not provide any guarantee or warranty (express or implied) regarding the accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability, or usefulness of the information; and disclaims any liability arising thereof.

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