How to Lose Water Weight Naturally
Water retention, or edema as it is correctly known, is a condition which affects many people where the body retains and stores excess fluids in body tissue. This fluid is not used to hydrate the body and is therefore excess to needs and can be safely removed by natural methods.
Th common way of treating water retention is with diuretic, or water pills which are prescribed by the doctor. While they are fine when taken for a few days to clear up the condition, it will return if your lifestyle is the cause of the problem and not a medical condition, which of course you should always have checked out by your doctor first. The idea of working naturally is to look at what is causing the problem and then go directly to that root cause rather than merely treating the symptoms, which usually return as soon as the treatment stops.
In this Hub Page I will look at some of the natural methods of dealing with water retention that are completely safe and can easily be followed by anyone with the desire to rid themselves of their excess fluid, or learn how to lose water weight naturally.
The first thing you should look at when looking for a cure for water retention, assuming your doctor has not found any underlying medical condition that may be causing it, is your diet, pure and simple.
Far too many people live on bad diets and they will never do themselves any good until they wake up and realize what they're doing to their bodies by continuing to bury their heads in the sand and ignore all the warnings. Water retention is a loud and clear warning sign that something is wrong in your diet and that you must make changes before more serious conditions come along as a result.
There are four major areas in a person's diet that can cause water retention and if left unchecked, can and will lead to more serious problems later on. They are:
- Too much salt, or sodium
- Too much sugar (sucrose, dextrose, glucose)
- Not enough protein
- Lack of amino acids and vitamin B group
Far too many people are still consuming too much salt in their diets. Too much salt will lead to high blood pressure which in turn can lead to strokes and coronary problems. Water retention is also a result of too much salt and simply by cutting down this can make a marked improvement quite quickly.
Similarly, too many people eat too much sugar and this can lead to type II diabetes along with a whole host of related conditions. Too much sugar also raises the levels of triglycerides in the bloodstream, which can also lead to coronary problems and even heart attacks. The compensatory rise in insulin levels will result in more fat storage. Water retention is another symptom of too much sugar, so it is important to look at where you are consuming to much and make changes.
Increasing your intake of protein is important on many levels, espcially in the building and repairing of muscle tissue and helping you to lose weight. A lack of proteins can also result in water retention,so its important to make sure you get enough protein rich food in your diet.
Amino acids are the building blocks of cells and cell regeneration in the body and you would normally get these through eating plenty of fresh food in your diet. The same goes for the B group of vitamins, a lack of which can lead to water retention.
If your diet consists mainly of processed food, pre-packaged ready meals from the supermarket, fast food from places like burger restaurants, junk food such as pizza, hot dogs, burgers, fries, sweet foods such as cakes, biscuits, candy, chocolate, sweets and all washed down with fizzy soda drinks, then you are going to satisfy not one, but all of the above four points.
What you probably don't realize is that by living on a diet of garbage like this is slowly killing you and water retention is just the tip of the iceberg.
What Diet Changes You Need to Make
The changes you should make to your diet should be to move towards eating properly prepared and cooked meals at home. That means buying fresh produce such as fresh fruit and vegetables (not pre-packed, or frozen or canned). It also means buying fresh meat (if you still eat it), fresh fish, wholemeal bread and some herbs and spices to add interest (and additional health benefits) to your meals.
By eating this way, you will naturally be lowering your intake of salt and sugar as these are present in high levels in all processed and junk foods. You will also naturally increase your levels of the B vitamins ans amino acids which will, combined, help your body to help itself and remove the retained fluids from the body tissues.
Ok, that means you need to prepare and cook your own meals and those of your family. If you can't cook, then learn. Your health and the health of your family depends upon it. If your kids will only eat pizza and chips, then you had better start teaching them why they should eat more good food. Education is everything and if they're not learning what will help them live long and healthy lives at school, then your job as a parent is to teach them yourself.
If you think that is an old fashioned view, or outdated, outmoded etc, then you need to put your thinking head on and think it through yourself. If you don't, you are sentencing your kids to die before you do because they'll be so unhealthy by the time they reach their 30s they won't know what's hit them.
If you're thinking "What has any of this to do with water retention?"
It has everything to do with water retention. Water retention is the warning signal that things are wrong in your diet. That warning is telling you that you have the chance to put them right. Ignore the warning and things will get worse over time.
Your choice!
