Maintaining adequate fluid balance is an essential component of health at every stage of life, yet can become more challenging as we grow older and more vulnerable to shifts in water balance that can result in dehydration.
Why does hydration matter?
In older adults, adequate fluid consumption has been associated with fewer falls, less constipation, better recoveries in orthopedic patients, reduced risk of bladder cancer in men and lower rates of fatal heart disease.
Dehydration can lead to constipation, falls, adverse effects from medications, urinary tract and respiratory infections, delirium, renal failure, seizure, hypo- and hyperthermia. In older adults with other health problems, it can precipitate emergency or repeated hospitalizations and increased mortality rates among older adults.
Who’s At Risk?
• Age and ethnicity. From 1990 to 2000, hospitalizations for dehydration in older adults increased by 40 percent. Adults ages 85 years and older were three times more likely to have a diagnosis of dehydration than younger adults. Among older adults who maintain hydration, physical or emotional illness, surgery, trauma or higher...
To view and download this full PLR article, you must be logged in. Registration is completely free. Once you create your account, you will be able to browse, search & downlod from our PLR articles database of over "1,57,897+" on 1,000's of niches and 200+ categories without paying a penny. Click here to signup...
