Cebu City – Sinulog Festival, one of the most celebrated religious festivals in the Philippines, held every third Sunday of January, in Cebu City. This year, the long week celebration started last 5 January 2023, with the Walk with Jesus at Basilica del Sto. Niño followed with the Opening Salvo Mass. Mostly, the activities involved are crowd gathering which includes religious masses, fluvial parade, trade fairs, pilgrimage, street and night parties.

These enjoyable activities come with a health and nutrition risk. The long walks during the street parade, pilgrimage, and the energy exhausted in the night parties utilizes body energy, thus the need to replenish the fluid and electrolyte loss. So, from the devotee of the Sr. Sto. Niño, to the younger generations who choose to join the parties, a reminder from the National Nutrition Council Region VII: keep yourself hydrated out there!

Take note, hydration provides the following benefits:

• Physical performance improvement – physical activity uses up body fluids, thus replenishing the consumption helps improve body functions.
• Help lose your weight – studies have reported that more water intake along with proper diet helps in reducing body weight.
• Upbeat your mood – needs to avoid fatigue, confusion, and sleepiness? Drink more water, studies have proven relationship between good hydration and boosted mood.
• Energize your braincells – more body fluids deliver more braincells lubrications.
• Reduces the chance of headaches – did you know that mostly, the cause of headache is dehydration? Yes, it is, so we must check our water levels when we perceive headache.
• Prevent various diseases – and yes, just drinking a lot of water prevents non communicable disease.

Drink up and stay hydrated, ka-Sinulog! // DMO II Kristal Katrina Bacay, RN