How To Lose Water Weight: Causes, Treatment, Prevention

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Water is essential for your overall health. But retaining too much water can also cause bloating and puffiness, which is not always fun. That said, water weight is common and usually not a cause for concern. If you’re curious how to lose water weight safely and feel less puffy overall, there are ways to help prevent it.

Water weight typically occurs because your body is trying to balance out hydration levels, so if you’re trying to reduce water retention, it’s important to do so as safely as possible. That means avoiding risky methods like diuretics (a kind of drug that causes you to pee frequently to shed excess fluids) which can dry out the kidneys and lead to damage, says Ana Maria Kausel, MD, an endocrinologist at Mount Sinai.

Still, experiencing bloating isn’t enjoyable, and it’s understandable to want relief fast. Here are the potential reasons behind your water weight, plus how to lose it safely, according to experts.

Meet the experts: Ana Maria Kausel, MD is an endocrinologist at Mt. Sinai and the co-founder of Anzara Health. Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN, is a Brooklyn-based nutritionist and co-author of The Carb Lovers Diet cookbook. Jessica Cording, RD, is a dietitian and the author of The Little Book Of Game-Changers: 50 Healthy Habits For Managing Stress and Anxiety.

In most cases, water retention is a result of too much sodium (salt) in the body. Essentially, your body holds onto water to try and keep your hydration levels stable, Dr. Kausel says. “Eating too much sodium pushes water out of the blood vessel into the tissue. The intravascular volume (the blood inside the vessels) depletes, and the kidneys sense there’s a lack of fluid, therefore retaining more,” Dr. Kausel explains.

Because your brain senses excess salt in the body, it then sends a signal to the kidney to retain water until the balance between water and sodium is established, she says. This can cause extra puffiness and bloat.