Wondering why you’ve been suffering from foot pain lately? There are numerous causes of foot pain, but one you may easily overlook is quite simple – you’re not drinking enough water.
That’s because when your body is dehydrated, it reacts in the form of pain. And when your body is severely dehydrated, your pain is often mistaken as related to other health issues.
How Can Dehydration Cause Foot Pain?
A good example of foot pain caused by dehydration is gout. This is a form of arthritis that can cause extreme pain, redness, and tenderness in the joints of your foot, especially in your big toe.
Gout occurs when there is an excessive amount of uric acid in your body – either because your body is overproducing it, or because your kidneys aren’t releasing enough through natural elimination. The acid then crystallizes, and its needle-like shards of crystals are deposited into your joints, causing inflammation and painful swelling that can linger for weeks at a time and return without warning.
The good news is that you can prevent or reduce the severity of gout flare-ups by drinking plenty of water. It dilutes the concentration of uric acid in your bloodstream, and it also helps your kidneys flush the acid from your body more efficiently.
The Link Between Hydration and Pain Relief
No doubt you’ve heard health experts recommend drinking eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day. That’s not just to quench your thirst.
Your body is 60 percent composed of water. It’s an important element that every organ in your body needs to function properly.
Much of your body’s water is stored in connective tissue including your tendons, ligaments, and collagen fibers. If you lose this supply of fluids due to aging, poor diet, or simply failing to drink enough water each day, you’re more prone to physical injury and inflammation that can lead to chronic pain.
This is especially the case in joints where water serves as a lubricant and helps clear out toxins. Dehydration forces your body to seek water from other areas, including your joints, to redistribute it. Meanwhile, this depletion of water from your joints enables toxins to remain, which fuels pain and inflammation.
Symptoms of Dehydration
Some of the symptoms of dehydration include:
- Chapped lips
- Dry skin
- Headaches
- Constipation
- Chronic pain
- Stiffness
- Unusual soreness
- Arthritis
Another telltale sign of dehydration is in the color of your urine. When you’re well hydrated, it’s light yellow or almost clear. When you’re dehydrated, your urine is a dark yellow or orange.
How Can I Stay Hydrated to Reduce Pain?
Staying properly hydrated is not just about how much water you consume, but also how much water your body retains and processes properly. Besides drinking eight 8-ounce glasses of water every day, also include healthy, water-rich foods in your diet.
Water-rich foods include juicy fresh fruits and vegetables such as oranges, pineapple, cantaloupe, strawberries, raspberries, lettuce, celery, and green peppers. In addition to providing extra hydration, these foods provide nutrients that help build strong, healthy cells in your feet and throughout your body.
Who Can Help My Foot Pain?
Painful joints may not always be avoidable, but they are certainly treatable. If you are experiencing chronic foot pain due to an injury, illness, work conditions, or any other reason, an orthopedic physician can help.
Call us at the Orthopaedic Associates of Central Maryland at (410) 644-1880 or fill out our online appointment request form today to find out what can be done to help relieve your pain – and get you back to doing what you enjoy the most.
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