How to Deal With Dehydration

Dehydration is when you do not supply sufficient fluid for your body, in other words, the amount of water being take in is less than the amount of water leaving the body.This might occur when you sweat too much, have diarrhea, or keep vomiting for a long time. An average adult needs at least 2 quarts of fluid every day to function normally. The demand for fluid varies with age, physical activity and whether a person is taking medications.Dehydration can be treated easily, however, if left untreated, will cause serious damages to the body. Learn how to recognize and cope with dehydration here.

Instructions

• 1

  Look for the following symptoms of dehydration: extreme thirst, fatigue, urination fewer than 5 times a day, cramps, dizziness, and dark yellow urine.

• 2

  Move the dehydrated person to a cool area. If she is outdoors, move her to a shaded area. Sit her down.

• 3

  Give her a lot of water. If you don't have water, give her Gatorade or other types of sport drinks, which contain electrolytes and carbohydrates. If you have hypertension, check with your doctor if sport drinks are appropriate for you in the case of dehydration, since sport drinks may contain high concentration of salts and worsen your condition.If the victim is a child, give her drinks such as Pedialyte, which is designed to treat dehydration in infants and children.

• 4

  Do not give her coffee, tea, soda, or any drink that contains high level of caffeine, sugar or alcohol, which can cause further dehydration.

• 5

  If she has diarrhea, avoid giving fruit juices and sodas, which might worsen her diarrhea.

• 6

  Call 911 if the symptoms persist. She may need to receive salts and fluids intravenously to fight dehydration.