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Last updated: September 2026
How to Get Rid of Water Retention Overnight
If you’re wondering how to get rid of water retention overnight, there are several simple steps that may help reduce temporary fluid build-up by the next morning. Drinking plenty of water, reducing your salt intake, elevating swollen areas and staying active can all help support your body’s natural fluid balance. While water retention does not always disappear overnight, making a few small changes before bed may help reduce puffiness and discomfort.
Many people notice temporary water retention in the feet, ankles, legs, hands or abdomen. This can be triggered by hot weather, hormonal changes, long periods of sitting or standing, dehydration, or eating foods that are high in salt. In most cases, occasional water retention is harmless and improves naturally once the underlying cause is addressed.
One home remedy that is often recommended is an Epsom salt bath. Although scientific evidence is limited, many people find that a warm bath helps soothe feelings of swelling and discomfort. Combined with good hydration and healthy lifestyle habits, it may help you wake up feeling less bloated and more comfortable.
Below, we’ll look at practical ways to reduce water retention overnight, the role of Epsom salts, and when persistent swelling may warrant further medical advice.
Why am I retaining water overnight?
Water retention can often feel more noticeable in the morning. Common reasons include:
- Eating salty foods the previous evening
- Hormonal changes
- Hot weather
- Long periods of inactivity
- Spending many hours sitting during the day
Many people notice temporary puffiness around the face, hands, feet or ankles after waking. In most cases, this improves naturally as you hydrate, move around and go about your day.
What Causes Water Retention?
Water retention occurs when excess fluid builds up in the body’s tissues. While it can feel uncomfortable, temporary water retention is common and is often linked to lifestyle, environmental or hormonal factors.
One of the most common causes is consuming too much salt. Sodium encourages the body to hold onto water, which is why you may notice puffiness after eating highly processed foods, ready meals or salty snacks.
Changes in temperature can also play a role. During warm weather, blood vessels naturally widen to help the body cool down. This can make it easier for fluid to collect in the tissues, particularly in the feet, ankles and lower legs.
Dehydration is another surprising trigger. When the body senses that fluid levels are low, it may hold onto available water as a protective mechanism. This is why drinking enough water throughout the day is important for maintaining a healthy fluid balance.
Hormonal fluctuations can also contribute to water retention. Many people notice bloating or swelling before their period, during pregnancy or throughout menopause as hormone levels change.
Long periods of sitting or standing can make water retention more noticeable too. Whether you’re travelling on a long-haul flight or spending the day at a desk, reduced movement can make it harder for fluid to circulate efficiently around the body.
Common symptoms of water retention include:
- Swollen feet, ankles or legs
- Puffiness in the hands or face
- Abdominal bloating
- A feeling of heaviness or tightness
- Temporary fluctuations in body weight
In many cases, mild water retention improves naturally once the underlying cause is addressed. However, if swelling is severe, persistent or accompanied by other symptoms, it’s important to seek medical advice.
Ways to reduce water retention overnight:
What is the fastest way to reduce water retention overnight?
If you’re looking for the fastest way to reduce water retention overnight, focus on habits that may help support your body’s natural fluid balance before bed. Drinking plenty of water, reducing salty and highly processed foods, staying active, elevating swollen feet or ankles and avoiding long periods of sitting may all help ease temporary fluid build-up by the next morning.
- Drink plenty of water throughout the day
- Reduce high-salt and highly processed foods
- Avoid sitting or standing in one position for long periods
- Elevate swollen feet or ankles where possible
- Stay physically active
- Wear loose, comfortable clothing
While these steps may help support normal fluid balance, persistent or severe swelling should always be discussed with a healthcare professional.
Does an Epsom Salt Bath Help with Water Retention?
Epsom salt baths are often suggested as a home remedy for water retention. Epsom salts contain magnesium sulphate and dissolve easily in warm water, making them a popular addition to relaxing baths.
Although there is limited evidence that Epsom salts directly reduce water retention, soaking in a warm bath may help ease feelings of swelling and discomfort. Warm water can encourage relaxation and may help improve circulation, which many people find beneficial when experiencing puffiness in the feet, ankles or legs.
If you’d like to try an Epsom salt bath, follow the instructions on the packaging and soak for around 15 to 20 minutes as part of your evening routine.
Eliminate sodium
Sodium is an electrolyte that’s important for regulating the amount of water we store in our body’s cells. Even small changes in the ratio of sodium to other electrolytes like potassium and magnesium, can result in a loss or increase in body fluid.
There are obvious sodium snack offenders like crisps, salted peanuts and pretzels, but sodium is often hidden in pre-prepared foods like ready meals, sauces and marinades. Even tinned soup, baked beans and salad dressings are likely crammed with sodium.
The best way to reduce your sodium intake is to side-step commercially prepared foods in favour of making meals from scratch. This way you are in control of the ingredients you’re consuming. Ditch the saltshaker for flavoursome herbs and spices like coriander, cumin and turmeric to jazz up curries, and basil and parsley to add pizzazz to pasta dishes.
Drink more water
It sounds like a contradiction but drinking more water can help to reduce possible symptoms of fluid retention by making it easier for the body to flush out excess salt. To stay hydrated you’ll need to sip around two litres of water.
Adding lemon and parsley sprigs to regular water can amplify the retention-reducing effects so it’s a good idea to liven up plain water. Carry a bottle of water around with you during the daytime hours and keep a glass of water by your bedside to avoid nighttime dehydration.
Elevate your legs
Being sedentary for prolonged periods can exacerbate water retention. Try to rest with your legs above your heart when you’re watching the telly or sat at your desk to help stimulate fluid to move around your body instead of building up in your feet and ankles.
Before bed, grab yourself a nice foot cream and gently massage your feet to help reduce retention and relax your senses before getting your zzzs.
Wear compression socks
Compression socks can be an effective way to combat water retention, especially if you’re sitting or standing all day long.
The tightly fitting socks help to give your blood circulation a boost by applying gentle pressure to your ankles and legs. This helps to support the tiny blood capillaries and removes excess fluid out of your tissues so that you feel more comfortable.
Take a bath
Soaking in a magnesium-rich Epsom salt bath can help to gently remove fluid buildup as the benefits of the salts are absorbed through the skin.
Add a handful of salts to a warm bath and soak in the tub for 15 to 20 minutes to help reduce swelling.
Avoid alcohol
A pre-dinner cocktail or two might feel like a good way to unwind after a busy day, but alcohol triggers dehydration, which leaves you feeling puffy and swollen.
Avoid alcohol-induced water retention and keep your body in tip-top condition by switching over to herbal teas. Tea infusions made of herbs like dandelion, nettle and fennel are a helpful aid to combat bloating.
Load up on diuretic foods
While there are lots of foods that cause water retention, there are also plenty of foods that help to flush away excess water weight.
Cucumber, celery and watermelon are a powerhouse of nutrients but better still, they also act as a diuretic, which means they increase urine output to help you get rid of water weight. Add these foods to your daytime diet to help reduce water retention overnight.
Take herbal water tablets
Water tablets are one of the most effective ways to help with losing weight, and herbal-based water tablets are a safe option that can provide relief in as quickly as 2 to 4 hours. They gently stimulate the body to lose excess fluid through sweat and urine.
Dandelion, buchu leaf and uva ursi root all feature in HRI Water Balance Tablets, which are formulated to target the symptoms of mild water retention for sufferers. This handy article explains how water retention tablets work.
While it’s not always possible to get rid of water retention completely overnight, simple lifestyle changes may help reduce temporary fluid build-up by the next morning. Staying hydrated, reducing salty foods, elevating swollen areas and keeping active can all help support your body’s natural fluid balance.
The fastest way to reduce water retention depends on the cause, but staying hydrated, limiting high-salt foods, moving regularly and avoiding long periods of sitting or standing may help ease bloating and puffiness. If symptoms persist or become severe, seek advice from a healthcare professional.
Water retention can be triggered by several factors, including hot weather, long-haul travel, eating salty foods, hormonal fluctuations and prolonged periods of inactivity. Certain medical conditions and medications can also contribute to fluid retention.
Drinking enough water is important for maintaining fluid balance, but other factors such as excess salt intake, hormonal changes, lack of movement and hot weather can still cause temporary water retention. Staying hydrated is only one part of managing fluid build-up.
Water retention occurs when excess fluid builds up in the body’s tissues, often causing swelling in areas such as the ankles, feet, hands and legs. Bloating typically refers to a feeling of fullness or tightness in the abdomen, often linked to digestion. While the two can occur together, they are not the same thing.
