With more than 30 years’ experience in the residential and commercial water treatment space, Mark Nelson is a Class 1 Drinking-Water Operator and a CBWA (Canadian Bottled Water Association) Certified Plant Operator. As founder and president of Nelson Water in Ottawa, Mark focuses on dealing with challenging water treatment system designs for problem water. He also heads the largest water bottling plant in the city of Ottawa with a delivery network throughout the Valley.
As you’re busy getting your children ready to head back to school, you’re likely to have a long list of things you need to do. With all of these concerns, you may wonder, will your child drink enough water at school?
The Dangers of Dehydration
Most of us are aware that dehydration can be serious if left unchecked. You may not be aware that children tend to be more quickly affected if they do not maintain proper hydration. Children have smaller bodies and smaller fluid reserves, so if they do not drink sufficient water, dehydration can happen quite quickly.
The signs of dehydration include dry, cracked lips, irritability, drowsiness, low energy, no tears when crying, and passing less urine than normal.
While mild cases of dehydration can be properly managed at home, moderate to severe cases require medical attention. If left unchecked, dehydration can lead to a rapid heartbeat, seizures, or even death.
Fortunately, this occurs in very severe cases, and dehydration can be managed or avoided altogether with proper fluid intake.
How Much Water Does Your Child Need?
The amount of water children need depends on a number of factors including weight, age, activity level, and sex. The air temperature, humidity, and overall health can also impact requirements.
The amount of water can also be determined by the fluid in the food they consume. If your child eats a lot of fruits and vegetables, it can decrease the amount of water they need to drink. This is because fruits and vegetables have a far higher water content compared to other solid foods.
Generally, both boys and girls under the age of eight have a total water requirement of 7 cups per day. This increases to 9 cups for girls age 9 to 13 and 10 cups for boys in this age bracket. Teen boys require 14 cups of water per day, while teenage girls need 10 cups.
Get Your Children to Develop a Habit of Drinking Water
When kids are busy with sports, school and other activities, they can easily forget to drink water. When combined with sweating, children can easily become dehydrated. While drinking juice and other beverages can help to maintain fluid levels, it is a better idea to help your children to develop a habit of drinking water.
Try to swap out sugary sodas and drinks for water, which will not only help to maintain proper hydration, but also be better for their teeth and weight management. Offer your children water periodically throughout the day. If they find water a little dull, it can always be livened up with lemon, lime, cucumber, or other natural flavours.
This will help your child to develop a taste for water and get into the habit of regularly rehydrating.
Install a Domestic Water Treatment Device
One of the common reasons why it can be difficult to get children to drink water is that tap water can be unpalatable. Although our water supplies are tested to ensure that they are free of potentially harmful contaminants, this does not mean that the water tastes good. Chlorine and other additives are used to disinfect water supplies and eliminate bacteria, but this can create a “swimming pool” odor and taste. There are also other water quality issues that can affect the taste, smell, and appearance of your water.
So, if you want your children to maintain proper hydration, it is important that the water tastes good. Although it is possible to purchase bottled water, this can be costly. A far more cost effective solution is to install a domestic water treatment system.
These systems can be installed at the point of use, such as under your kitchen sink, or point of entry, where the water supply enters your home. This will ensure that any unwanted contaminants are removed from your drinking water supplies, so the entire family can enjoy great tasting, clean, safe water.
Buy Reusable Water Bottles
While there may be water fountains in your child’s school, nothing beats having a bottle filled with cool, delicious water from home on hand. It is a good idea to buy some reusable water bottles that you can fill up at home, and your child can carry throughout the day. Just be sure that your children have backpacks with water bottle pockets, so the bottle is easily accessible throughout the day.
Another important reason to buy reusable water bottles is that there are concerns about lead levels in school water systems. Many schools have older plumbing systems, which can introduce potentially harmful contaminants into drinking water supplies. So, for your peace of mind, be sure that your child is carrying a bottle with filtered water from home.
Have Spare Reusable Water Bottles
A water bottle is only any good if it is filled with delicious, filtered water. Unfortunately, little ones can often misplace bottles or accidentally leave them at school. This will mean that the following day, you’ll not be able to send them to school with a bottle unless you have some spares at home. This will put your child at risk of dehydration. So, keep spare reusable water bottles, so your children will not go without water for even one day.
Lead by Example
Don’t overlook the fact that children take their cues from us. So, if you want to encourage your children to drink more water, you need to lead by example. If your children see you drinking lots of water and sticking to this healthy habit, they are more likely to want to drink water themselves.
If you would like to learn more about improving the quality of your drinking water, be sure to speak to a water treatment professional. An experienced technician can test your water to determine contaminant levels and then guide you through the appropriate treatment options. This will ensure that you and your children can enjoy great tasting, safe drinking water at home and on the go with water bottles filled before you leave home.