What is Dehydration?
Dehydration is the loss of water and salt from the body. Dehydration occurs when a person’s body loses more water than the required quantity of water take in. Our body needs water to maintain volume of blood and ensure that other fluids in the body function properly.
Dehydration is always dangerous for human body. After all up to 60% of body weight of a person comprises of water. This is why drinking of 6-8 glasses of water helps our body function efficiently. Water is vital to both organ function and digestion. It also controls the blood pressure and carries the nutrition and oxygen throughout the body .Without enough water your skin can become dry and wrinkled.
Dehydration is always dangerous for human body. After all up to 60% of body weight of a person comprises of water. This is why drinking of 6-8 glasses of water helps our body function efficiently. Water is vital to both organ function and digestion. It also controls the blood pressure and carries the nutrition and oxygen throughout the body .Without enough water your skin can become dry and wrinkled.
Causes of Dehydration
The immediate causes of dehydration include not enough water take in and too much water loss from the body. Sometimes it is not possible us to consumes enough fluids because we are too busy or in an area without potable water. Additional causes of dehydration are under:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Sweating
- Frequent urination
- Diabetes
- Burns
What are the Symptoms of Dehydration?
The common symptoms of dehydration are thirst, darker colour of urine and decrease urine production. But urine colour is one of the best indicators of a person’s hydration level, clear urine mean your body is well hydrated and darker urine means you are dehydrated.
There are following few symptoms of mild to moderate dehydration and severe dehydration:
Causes of mild to moderate dehydration:
- Thirst
- Dry, sticky mouth
- Sleepiness or tiredness
- Few or no tears when crying
- Decreased urine output
- Headache
- Dry skin
- Dizziness
- Constipation
Causes of Severe dehydration:
- Extreme thirst
- Sunken eyes
- Little or no urination — any urine that is produced will be darker than normal
- Rapid breathing
- Very dry mouth, skin and mucous membranes
- Sleepiness or extreme fussiness in infants and children; irritability and confusion in adults
- Lack of Sweating
- Dry skin that lacks elasticity and doesn't "bounce back" when pinched into a fold
- In infants, sunken fontanels — the soft spots on the top of a baby's head
- Low blood pressure
- Increased heartbeat
- No tears when crying
- Fever
- Delirium or unconsciousness
How can dehydration be prevented?
- Drink plenty of fluids, especially when working or playing in the sun.
- Make sure you are taking in more fluid than you are losing.
- Try to schedule physical outdoor activities for the cooler parts of the day.
- Drink appropriate sports drinks to help maintain electrolyte balance.
- For infants and young children, solutions like Pedialyte will help maintain electrolyte balance during illness or heat exposure.
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