Nursing homes are built to help people who cannot realistically take care of themselves. The biggest dangers within a nursing home are as simple as falling, getting an infection, or medication side effects. In the context of a nursing home, many simple things become challenging. There is no better example of this than hydration.

Hydration, contrary to popular belief, is not as simple as drinking water. The amount of water going into the body doesn’t directly translate to water in the cells. Water making its way into the cells can be inhibited by a lack of electrolytes. For the average person, this won’t ever be an issue, but for those in nursing homes, it can be devastating.

Take, for instance, a patient on antidiabetics, a medication that depletes fluids. Even while drinking tons of water and eating well, these antidiabetics paired with old age may make hydration challenging. Add onto this any range of chronic illnesses and the issue only gets more complicated. 

This is the reason that 51% of nursing home residents can be considered dehydrated. There are solutions, such as direct infusion, but these can be costly. The reality is that most people are lacking in at least some nutrients. The problem is that in older populations this can lead to long term complications and death. So why do nursing home residents have trouble hydrating? It’s because they don’t have the nutritional resources to do so.

Source: DriptIV.com