Water balance of the aged people in summer

Abstract

The daily water balance was studied on hot summer days in 34 healthy aged people (9 males and 25 females; mean age 73.1 years) . 1. The mean total water intake was 2.71/day: 1.61 (60.0%) as drinking water, 0.91 (33.1 %) from foods, and 0.21 (6.9%) as combustion water. Drinking water was taken mostly as Japanese tea and barley tea. 2. The urine volume was 1.31. When the total water excretion is assumed to be equal to the total water intake, 1.41 was considered to have been lost by perspiration. 3. No difference was observed in the results shown in 1 and 2 between males and females. 4. The total water intake was slightly greater than that in the average healthy adult, probably because the water intake increased at the time of the survey due to a heat wave. 5. The urine volume and osmolality were normal so that the subjects are not considered to have been dehydrated. These findings suggest that dehydration can be prevented in aged individuals even during summer by taking 1-2 1 of fluid.