Gaining Weight Or Water Retention?

Gaining Weight Or Water Retention?

Weight gain can be extremely frustrating, especially when you don’t know what is really causing it. Undoubtedly, your daily diet typically plays the most important role in weight gain, but other factors such as stress and lack of sleep and physical activity, may contribute to it as well. Many  health enthusiasts these days have pondered over this dilemma and are troubled with it. My City Links got into an invigorating conversation with Nutritionist Varun Mishra, Co-founder of Diet Is Everything and tried to clear the air around water retention in the body.

Before diving into the topic of water retention, we first have to understand that gaining water weight during the course of the day is quite common and not an indication of any health hazard. When it leads to other underlying ailments and persists for a long period of time, it might need professional attention.

Why does one gain weight despite splitting ways with junk food and sugar?

The good news is, it might be due to water retention. If clean eating has been your mantra, and you’ve managed to keep those sinful cravings in control, and yet the number on your scale keeps rising, water retention may be the reason.

It is often seen that people have managed to crack through that weight loss plateau and meet their calorie deficit requirements without damaging their metabolic system. They are regularly working out, mixing cardio exercises with weights. But for some mysterious reason, they still feel bloated and puffy. The number on the scale may have even gone up, and it gets on your nerves when you’re already doing everything right. Infact, what feels like fat gain could possibly be water weight or more appropriately, water retention.

We have been taught at school that water is our life force and makes up 60% of our bodies. So basically we are all sentient cucumbers. The problem arises when our body is holding on to too much water than needed. This accumulation of excess water in the body is termed as water retention, or oedema (edema), which gets amassed in the interstitial compartment or ’tissue space’ that surrounds tissue cells. Oedema becomes a sign of serious medical concern as it indicates disorder of our kidneys, liver and thyroid. 

“Sometimes you may have felt and noticed that your hands, feet and wrists are getting slightly swollen. The face may feel and look puffy, the stomach may feel bloated and you notice a sudden, unexplainable weight gain (after ruling out any side effects of medication),” said Nutritionist Varun Mishra, explaining the signs of water retention.

He added, “For women, it is quite frequent for their body to hold on to water before and during menstruation, during pregnancy, and menopause. This is not something to be worried about. In some cases, it also results from taking oral contraceptive pills, in which case it is advisable to consult with your gynaecologist to try a different combination of birth control.”

Water retention becomes a cause of concern when it is accompanied by other symptoms like coughing, shortness of breath, fatigue, tightness of the skin on the affected/bloated area. “To begin with, water retention is not a cause of concern until and unless it starts affecting your day-to-day activities. These symptoms require professional attention if they continue to persist for longer than five-six days or increase in intensity,” added Varun.

On the contrary, for most people, water retention is a temporary condition that can be remedied with a few lifestyle changes and dietary modifications. The solution is to identify what’s causing your body to hold onto water. 

What causes water retention? 

You may have often felt your mouth feel extra dry, parched and puckered when you eat too many salted peanuts. Common table salt is basically sodium chloride. Mishra explained it simply by saying, “Too much intake of sodium chloride makes you feel thirsty inside-out. This causes the body to hold onto that water to dilute the excess salt. This leads to water retention in the body.“

A high level of insulin is another factor that adds another layer to the mess caused by sodium retention. It increases its reabsorption into the kidneys which in turn leads to more water retention.

Sedentary lifestyle

Sitting in one place for long stretches also causes fluid to build up in the body. A sedentary lifestyle is equivalent to low or minimal activity. When there is movement in the body, the muscles pump around the fluids inside us. Inactivity can considerably slow down this process and be a contributing factor to water retention, according to Mishra who is also a fitness trainer. This is the reason why you often feel puffy after a long flight. 

“Moderate daily exercise and activity keep the blood pumping, fat burning, muscles and organs healthy. People who are overweight are not exempt from water retention in their body. They too struggle with its symptoms and side-effects. Increased body fat puts pressure on the veins making the organs sluggish,” he added.

Low water intake

Yes. Not drinking enough water can also lead to water retention. Now you may be thinking, if there is already excessive fluid in my system, why do I need to drink more water? Let’s dive in.

That one glass of water in the morning and another at lunch is not enough. When the body is dehydrated, an alarm bell goes off in the system and in a panic, it starts storing water. 

“The amount of water needed largely depends on the body composition, but a minimum of 2-2.5 litres of water in the day is the base,” said the nutritionist. “And ‘in the day’ does not mean all at once. It means ‘all through the day’. Guzzling down lots of water in a short period of time could do more harm than good. It causes a sudden disruption of the body’s electrolytes balance, leading to overly diluting the sodium in the body which is an essential compound.”

Prolonged periods of stress

When the level of the stress hormone or cortisol is high, the body releases aldosterone which is another hormone in charge of balancing sodium and potassium in the body. With the increase in aldosterone in the body, more potassium is expelled while holding on to more sodium and throwing off the balance of minerals.

“Vasopressin, also called antidiuretic hormone (ADH), is in charge of how much water our kidneys reabsorb. Prolonged periods of high stress leads to increased ADH in the body, which is the signal master directing the kidneys about how much water to hold and pump back,” he further added. 

How to keep the water flowing?

The first and foremost step is to increase the amount of water you intake and reduce the amount of salt and sugar you ingest. Following that, Mishra advises adding potassium-rich foods to our diet. Add berries and raisins to make your bowl colorful and fancy, or keep it simple with bananas, spinach and sweet potatoes.

Protein should be incorporated in the daily diet to keep water retention at bay. Protein holds on to salt and water, preventing it from seeping into the surrounding tissue. Pulses, nuts, whole cereals, eggs and chicken are some of the protein-rich foods.

Mishra also advises keeping an eye on the body’s Vitamin B6 levels as some studies have linked its deficiency with mild water retention. Add walnuts, potatoes, chickpeas, fish and green leafy vegetables to your plates to keep it under check. Natural diuretics like herbal tea, barley (jau) tea, cucumber, ginger and garlic, as opposed to pills, will help flush out fluids.

Increase physical activity in your daily routine

Getting hot and sweaty during a workout aids in keeping the blood pumping in our body and floods our body with happy hormones. Daily cardio exercise keeps the heart healthy and blood circulation up and going. It helps in sweating out excess fluid and salt, and sends oxygen flowing to every organ. “A beginner can start physical activity with a daily brisk walk for at least 20 minutes to keep water retention in check and the heart and lungs healthy,” advised Mishra. 

Yoga is another great option to deal with water retention. Especially the cobra pose. “The cobra pose or Bhujangasana can alleviate the discomfort you’re feeling because of water retention by improving blood circulation and hence aiding in digestion,” added Mishra.

More seasoned practitioners can go for the shoulder stand pose or Sarvangasana to stimulate and encourage the water to drain from the body’s lower extremities. “The movement of yoga postures invigorates the entire body and encourages the drainage of fluids in the body. But again, it is important to go slow and steady and stick to a level of difficulty that you’re comfortable with to avoid injury.“

A lot of times, water retention is linked to an irritating but not-so-serious cause. It makes you feel sluggish, stiff and bloated. Although an annoying condition, it can be kept under check by being health conscious.