Festival Season is almost upon us, hopefully bringing with it the warmer, sunnier weather.
PROSEC staff will be deploying to conduct Festival Security, stewarding and Crowd Management duties at some of the UK’s largest festivals within the next couple of months and may well be working outside in the heat of the midday sun for long periods. By their very nature, Glastonbury, Reading, Leeds, Shambala and other festivals and events normally fall in the hottest months of the year.
So as our staff start to deploy and the British summer starts to warm up, it is important to ensure you stay hydrated. But how much water should you drink ?
While many of us could survive for weeks without food, we would only last a matter of days without water. This clear liquid is essential to our life, and about half of body is made up of it. That means its important to keep topped up to avoid dehydration and the associated problems this may cause, like constipation, headaches, tiredness and dizziness.
How much should we actually drink ?
This has been debated by numerous people and departments over the last few years and the average of 8 glasses a day is the number that is most consistently banded around, but there is no hard evidence to support this figure. The actual quantity we need will be dependent on a number of factors like the person in question, their size, weight, the activity they are carrying out, what the temprature is, whether you have been ill and even what you have eaten !
What to drink ?
Although we hear a lot about drinking water, it is actually our total fluid intake that is important in terms of our hydration. Most adults need to consume between 1.5 and 3 litres of fluid a day. This can come from a range of sources like milk, fruit juices, soft drinks like squash and fizzy drinks….and even food!
Water is a very good everyday choice as, not only will it hydrate you but it is free from sugar and therefore calories, and as it contains no acids it will not damage your teeth. But there are alternatives to water, and you can choose from a range of low calorie drinks that do not contain added sugars. Milk and fruit juice will hydrate you and can be a less ‘boring’ alternative to water, but be aware that although they are nutritious, they can add alot of calories to your diet, leading to weight gain.
What about tea and Coffee ?
As long as they are of ‘normal strength’ and are consumed in moderate amounts (About 5 cups a day), they are fine for most people.
The dehydration test
There are a number of tell tale signs of dehydration we should be aware of, some more obviuos than others, like feeling thirsty and having a dry mouth, but we can also tell by looking at your urine, a pale straw colour is the ideal shade, but if its dark yellow you may need to drink more !
Water is always provided in abundance to all PROSEC staff, no matter where their positions, but if you are deploying as staff to one of our festivals this year, you should, as always, ensure you deploy (as per our festival staff packing list) with a full water container or camelback.