ORS: how to mix and use it correctly for diarrhoea and dehydration

Oral rehydration salts (ORS) are one of the most important medicines ever made. They replace the water and salts the body loses in diarrhoea, vomiting and heat. ORS is especially important for children, who become dehydrated faster than adults.

How to mix ORS correctly

• Wash your hands.
• Use clean drinking water: boiled and cooled, or safe bottled water.
• Add the whole sachet to the exact amount of water written on the packet (many are made for 1 litre, some for smaller amounts). Too little water makes it too salty; too much makes it weak.
• Stir until fully dissolved. Do not add sugar, salt, juice or anything else.
• Cover it and use within 24 hours. Make a fresh batch after that.

How to give ORS

• Give small sips often, or a spoon every minute or two for small children. Big gulps can trigger vomiting.
• If your child vomits, wait 10 minutes, then start again more slowly.
• Offer ORS after every loose stool. Your doctor or pharmacist can tell you a rough amount for your child's age.
• Keep breastfeeding and keep giving normal food once the child is able to eat. Food helps the gut recover.

Zinc for children

For children with diarrhoea, doctors in Pakistan often prescribe zinc along with ORS, following WHO advice. It can shorten the illness. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about the right zinc product for your child's age.

ORS in summer heat

During heatwaves, ORS helps workers, the elderly and anyone sweating heavily replace lost salts. Sports drinks and fizzy drinks are not a substitute: they have too much sugar and too little salt.

Signs of dehydration

• Thirst, dry mouth and lips
• Less urine, or dark yellow urine
• Tiredness, irritability, no tears when crying
• Sunken eyes, or a sunken soft spot on a baby's head

Go to a hospital right away if

• there is blood in the stool
• the child cannot drink, or vomits everything
• the child is very sleepy, floppy or hard to wake
• no urine for 6 to 8 hours
• diarrhoea lasts more than a few days, or there is high fever

Keep a few sachets of ORS at home and in your bag in summer. DawaaiMart delivers ORS and zinc syrups across the city.