hydration

Nationwide IV fluid shortage changing how hospitals manage patient hydration

8:00am November 19, 2024

Many U.S. hospitals are conserving critical intravenous fluids to cope with a supply shortage caused by Hurricane Helene. They're changing protocols for administering drugs and hydration through IVs.

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A sensor developed by scientists at U.C. Berkeley can provide real-time measurements of sweat rate and electrolytes in sweat.

Health & Safety

Want To Know What's In Your Sweat? There's A Patch For That

3:39pm August 20, 2019

Scientists are getting closer to developing a wearable patch that can measure hydration and other health markers — in sweat. The hope is it could give athletes more data to boost their performance.

Just a 10 percent shift in the salt concentration of your blood would make you very sick. To keep that from happening, the body has developed a finely tuned physiological circuit that includes information about that and a beverage's saltiness, to know whe

Blech! Brain Science Explains Why You're Not Thirsty For Salt Water

7:36pm March 27, 2019

by Jon Hamilton

Fresh water quenches thirst almost instantly, but salt water doesn't. New research shows how cells in the gut and on the tongue help the brain keep just the right concentration of salt in our bodies.

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A study in mice suggests that our brains tell us when to start and stop drinking long before our bodies are fully hydrated.

Still Thirsty? It's Up To Your Brain, Not Your Body

4:33pm February 28, 2018

by Jon Hamilton

Thirst is what compels us to start hydrating. Now scientists have found a brain circuit in mice that seems to switch off thirst when they've taken in enough fluid and before it gets dangerous.

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Kids and teens should get two to three quarts of water per day, via food or drink, research suggests.

Got Water? Most Kids, Teens Don't Drink Enough

11:19am June 13, 2015

by Richard Harris

More than half the young people in a recent study were at least mildly dehydrated — maybe enough to affect energy and concentration. Roughly 25 percent said they never drink water.

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