Creative ways to keep your kids hydrated

Keeping children hydrated is especially important during the hot summer months. Dr. Matthew Stewart from Nemours Children’s Health Delaware Valley joined PHL17 with some creative ways to ensure proper hydration.

“Between the ages of one to three, we recommend about three to four cups a day. From the ages of four to eight, it’s five to eight cups a day. And then from eight plus, it’s really eight of those eight ounce cups a day that we recommend,” said Dr. Stewart.

Hydrating foods like cucumbers and watermelon can also be helpful.

“Another option is skim milk, which a lot of people don’t think about. It actually has a ton of water content in it and it’s a fun way if you add some spinach and some other fruit you can make a nice smoothie out of it.”

If your child is refusing to drink water, Dr. Stewart had some ideas to get them excited about it like decorating a water bottle.

“It becomes a personalized item that when you’re trying to push water for them during the summer, they’re excited to run over, get the water bottle, take a big sip and then keep playing.”

Finally, it’s important to look out for signs of dehydration like dark yellow urine, cracked or dry lips and dizziness.

“Especially coming into this August month a lot of our older athletes are going back to their summer preseason so it’s really important for them to know if they have cracked lips, they’re getting lightheaded, if they’re feeling like their vision is getting a tad blurry or they feel nauseous, they really should take a break.”

For more hydration tips, visit Nemours website here.

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