Mealtime Partners, Inc.

The holiday season is upon us, and during this time of the year many people change their behaviors and eat and drink differently than they do during the rest of the year. The change is easily explained by the change in people’s social life. Most people in the United States interact more frequently with family and friends during the holiday season. They go to more parties and brunches, and they visit with more people. As a result of these interactions they eat different foods, and enjoy beverages that are associated with the season, like eggnog, champagne, hot chocolate, specialty coffees, etc.

It is commonly believed that if we drink alcoholic beverages they will cause us to become dehydrated. It seems logical that if that is the case, drinking additional water, while we have these drinks, should counter the effects and we won’t become dehydrated. In fact, it is not that simple. To understand what our body does when we drink alcohol, we first should understand what goes on in our body when we drink water.

The human body is comprised of more than 50% water. About two-thirds of this fluid is contained in the cells of the body and the remaining one-third is outside the cells. The fluid moves in and out of the cells, through the cell walls, or membrane, depending upon the concentration of the chemicals in the cells. The cells of the body contain a mixture of chemicals including sodium (salt) and potassium that are dissolved in the intracellular fluid (the fluid inside the cells). The cell chemistry is kept at a stable level by the body either pulling fluid from the cells to increase the chemical concentration, or by pushing fluid through the cell membrane into the cells to dilute the chemicals in the cells.

Our bodies maintain their fluid levels at a relatively stable volume all of the time. The fluid level is ideal when the level of fluid inside the cell walls and that outside the cell walls is equal. This condition is an isotonic condition. When this balance is lost either because the fluid in the cells decreases creating a hypotonic state, and the cell chemistry becomes too concentrated (known as cellular dehydration), or the extracellular fluid decreases due to normal fluid loss like perspiration, urination, etc., the brain triggers the desire for a drink, or thirst. When liquid is consumed, it allows the balance to be re-established. However, when alcohol is consumed it interferes with this process.

The pituitary gland, which is located in the brain, produces a hormone called vasopressin, which is responsible for regulating the volume of urine that the body excretes. Vasopressin is an anti-diuretic hormone (ADH) that adjusts the amount of liquid that is reabsorbed into the blood stream from the kidneys. During normal operation ADH will suppress the desire to urinate, if the body is low on water, and make sure that the water is reabsorbed by the body. However, when alcohol is consumed, the body produces less ADH and, therefore, we produce more urine. Because ADH controls how much urine we expel, if the amount of ADH is reduced, then we expel more urine.

As it was suggested at the beginning of this article, it would be understandable to think that simply drinking more water would solve the problem of dehydration due to alcohol consumption. This assumption is partially correct. Drinking additional water is helpful, but research has shown that about half of the additional water is also expelled as urine. However, if you retain half of the water that you drink, it certainly will help with the level of dehydration you experience.

For those partiers who are unable to hold a bottle or glass, we recommend a hands-free drinking system so that you are able to sip on the beverage of your choice while you party!!

Happy Holidays!