Causes of Reduced Thirst in Some Individuals
Q: Since I can remember, I have not had the mechanism that triggers thirst. I have just never been thirsty, unless I have exercised or overexerted myself. Otherwise I can literally go all day and not be thirsty. I would just like to know if there is a medical cause for this?
By: Melissa
Reply:
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Thirst is a subjective feeling. It is normal for some people to feel less thirsty than others.
However, our body is made up of 70% water. After air, water is the next most important thing required to survive. It is therefore imperative that you consume adequate water according to your needs, even if you are not feeling thirsty.
On a very rough average, a person is recommended to have at least 8 glasses of water daily. It is very important to be adequately hydrated. If not, all your vital organs like heart, kidneys, brain etc. may get adversely affected.
Do you have any other symptom, like low blood pressure, not feeling hungry etc.? Let us know, if any, for further evaluation.
Factors Influencing Thirst
Certain factors may influence the thirst feeling. Some of them are:
- Taking juicy or watery food diet. This may already quench the thirst before having water.
- Sometimes, taking a lot of dehydrating beverages can hamper the thirst feel in a long run. These beverages include tea, coffee, etc. They are actually dehydrating, but dampen the thirst feeling. So people consuming them should compensate by having more water.
- Hypothalamic lesion: Medically speaking, this is the only medical condition in which thirst feeling is reduced. Hypothalamus is an important gland near the base of the brain which controls these triggers. Any lesion on this gland may affect such triggers.
Patients with hypothalamic lesions need further evaluation. Usually some other symptom like reduced hunger feel or temperature fluctuations are reported.
Take Care,
Buddy M.D
Mostly I won’t feel thirsty often and I consume below 1 liter of water daily and now I have 2-3 stones in both kidneys. What I must do to induce thirst? One doubt, shall we take water immediately after exercising? May I have any way to induce it through food?
If you are an adult, it is recommended you consume at least 2 liters of water in a day. This is essential, as water is very essential for all the cells of the body. Even a little deficiency of water is bad for brain cells.
Your thirst may be less because of fewer physical exercises or less of salt in your diet. Natural way to increase your thirst would be to include small sessions of physical workouts in your daily routine.
Read more on this topic above.