Gulp! Is Your Little Athlete Getting Enough Water?!

Hi Folks! In a doctor’s waiting room the other day I happened to pick up one of the parenting mags and, as a sidebar to an article on sports injuries, it ran these tips:

Go Ahead and Gulp

Even slight dehydration decreases a child’s strength and decision-making skills on the field, which can lead to injuries. Use these tips to help your little athlete get enough water:

1 – Your child should drink 16 ounces of water two hours before a practice or game.

2- Then he should drink another 8 ounces for every 15 minutes he’s participating — even during cooler weather.

3 – It cane be hard to keep the fluid inake up during games, so at halftime your child should drink three full cups of water.

4 – Offer three cups post-game to make up for intake missed during the game.

But is this really enough? Some suggestions I might add:

5 – Three weeks before the big game begin a “hydration habituation” routine. Wake your child to give him four ounces of water at 11 p.m. and again at 4 a.m. Gradually increase the amounts to half a gallon.

6 – A week before the game, switch your little athlete to an all-liquid diet. (Jello is a-okay!)

7 – On game day, hook your child up to an intravenous saline solution in the morning. Detach him an hour before game time. Offer him 42 ounces of his favorite drink.

8- At half-time, shove your child’s head in a pail of water and gently hold it down.  

9- If your child shows any of the very earliest signs of dehydration — fatigue, hunger, energy, a loss of appetite –hurry home and place child in tub. He can come out as soon as he’s drunk it dry. Yes, that includes sucking all the moisture out of the washcloth(s).

10 – Remember: Sports is all about fun!

11 – And death by dehydration!

This is a good start.