Name: How many glasses of water should you drink each day?
Creator: Dr Karen Martin
Published: 2023-03-01T11:33:46.101Z

How many glasses of water should you drink each day?

Dr Kandi discusses recommendations of a hydration skin pinch test

Dioralyte: uses, benefits & dosage information

Dioralyte is an [oral rehydration therapy](https://www.healthwords.ai/us/explore/treatment/content/oral-rehydration-solution-ors-272) and contains a mix of electrolytes and minerals necessary to avoid dehydration. Often patients will take Dioralyte following bouts of exercise, diarrhea, or vomiting. 

The formulation contains different essential salts such as sodium chloride, potassium chloride, disodium hydrogen citrate, and a small amount of sugar in the form of glucose. The product can be added to water to make a solution that’s readily absorbed by the body.

Children: constipation and hydration – causes and barriers

Constipation can occur in all ages but is particularly common in children. Here are some of the frequent questions parents often ask pediatricians.

Ensuring adequate hydration to help our bodies remain healthy can be a tough task, especially in hot conditions, and during strenuous activities or exercise. Hot temperatures and increased water and salt losses can lead to dehydration. Mild dehydration may be felt as thirst, headache, mild dizziness, reduced need to urinate, and dry skin. In its more severe form, dehydration can result in reduced alertness, fatigue, muscle cramps, loss of consciousness, and long-term damage to your kidneys.

Hydration, in its simplest form, is to supply and retain water in the body's tissues. Take in too little water, and you risk dehydration, making it hard for the body to carry out essential functions. And with loss of water, you lose essential salts and minerals, causing further turmoil in your body.

We've all experienced mild dehydration at times, like when the weather is hot, or we are doing a sweaty workout. Fighting a fever or a stomach bug also leaves you lacking hydration.

But you might have overlooked the toll a flight can take on your body. An airline cabin draws air in from the upper atmosphere for us to breathe in, and this is very dry. The cabin air can be less humid than the Sahara Desert, and you actually lose water through your breath. Telling signs can be a dry feeling in your nose and throat, your contact lenses feeling scratchy, and you might be passing urine less, or it's dark and strong-smelling.

You might feel thirsty, but this is actually a late sign, as when thirst sets in, your body is already 2% dehydrated. You need to work hard to replace this. Your body will work best if you can plan ahead to avoid dehydration, rather than playing catch-up.

If you're traveling with little ones, they have a higher body surface area and breathe a bit faster, so they can become dehydrated even more quickly, and salt imbalance follows. It can be tempting to let them snooze through the flight (and give you some peace), but feeling tired and sleepy can also be a sign of dehydration, so make sure they have topped up before nodding off.

Dr Kandi explains the pinch test, and how it can help you detect whether you're adequately hydrated.

Dr Kandi - Pinch test

Oral rehydration therapy (also known as oral rehydration salts or solution) is used to prevent and treat dehydration. Around the world, it is used to prevent serious illness and death from diarrhea. It has been reported to reduce the risk of death by more than 90%. It is considered so important that it is a part of the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines.

Oral rehydration solutions are a balanced formulation of [electrolytes](https://www.healthwords.ai/us/explore/article/content/electrolyte-replacement-products-426) and minerals such as:

- sodium 
- potassium 
- magnesium 
- phosphorus 
- chloride 
- small proportion of glucose 

They can be added to water to make a solution that’s readily absorbed by the body. The electrolyte composition of ORS is carefully balanced to mimic the electrolyte concentrations found in the human body, facilitating optimal absorption and retention of fluids.

Is your lifestyle stressing your skin out?

We have all had that important date on the calendar coming up, and a day or so before, what happens – our skin breaks out. Many different things in our day-to-day life can affect how our skin reacts. Some in the short term and others over the long term. Here the Healthwords medical team takes a look at some of these lifestyle factors in detail that can contribute to changes in your skin.

Diarrhea and vomiting – how to get through it

Diarrhea and vomiting are something most of us have suffered with at some point in our lives. For many, it is a horrible week’s worth of symptoms, but eventually things begin to feel better. Here we will discuss some of the common questions patients ask their doctor about diarrhea and vomiting.

Dr Karen Martin

Pharmacist and Head of US Content

Dr Kandi discusses recommendations of a skin pinch hydration test

How many glasses of water should you drink each day?

Doctor’s advice

Related topics

Dioralyte: uses, benefits & dosage information

Children: constipation and hydration – causes and barriers

Hydration, dehydration, and heatstroke

Hydration in a nutshell

Hydrated skin and the pinch test

How do oral rehydration salts work?

Oral rehydration solution (ORS)

Is your lifestyle stressing your skin out?

Diarrhea and vomiting – how to get through it