Doctor reminds some dehydration symptoms can overlap with COVID-19 symptoms

(FOX 2) - Suddenly we're facing some pretty serious heat and humidity here in Michigan and even slight dehydration can send your body out of whack. We need the right amount of fluid for all systems to function.

FOX 2 producer Christina LaCombe had the experience firsthand when she caught up on some gardening this weekend. She realized she hadn't drunk enough water later that night, but says she was even feeling out of sorts the next day even. 

"So I felt really tired, I had a tickle in my throat, I had a headache and I haven't been sick in a long time so I thought, 'Oh my gosh, should I go get tested [for the coronavirus]?'" she told us. 

"Some symptoms of dehydration, for example, can overlap with other things, other things like COVID for example. So you can have feelings of shortness of breath, you can have feelings of dry throat, heaving, and so it's very natural to say, is this COVID? Or is it something else?" said Dr. Rena Daiza from Henry Ford Family Medicine. 

She says thirst can be one symptom of dehydration, but others can sneak up on you like feeling dizzy, having a rapid heartbeat, a headache or muscle cramps. The first step is to get out of the heat and start hydrating immediately. 

"Immediately try to attain adequate hydration, drink plenty of water and then those symptoms should resolve if this is actually dehydration. Now, if they don't resolve then we may be dealing with something else. Could be COVID, could be something else depending on the whole picture but that's when you want to talk to your doctor if you're having concerns symptoms are persisting," Dr. Daiza said. 

If you're going to be out in the heat, keep that water bottle handy. An easy way to know if you're getting enough water is to make sure you are needing to take bathroom breaks.