How to tell my baby is dehydrated?

Question

My 7 month old son appears to be teething, and he recently was vomiting and had diarrhea, my wife and I took him to the hospital where they told us it was most likely a virus. I want to make sure he stays good and hydrated, but am unsure of how to tell if he is becoming dehydrated.

He seems lethargic, which is VERY unusual for him but I can't be sure if this is simply because he might have a virus is teething or if he is dehydrated. He is drooling a lot still, and I figured if he was drooling that he must be hydrated, but I wanted to make SURE.

Answer 1

Drooling is a good sign...  Tears are good...  Wet diapers are good.. White gums are bad.

You might check out www.webmd.com

It has symptom checkers with age and gender.  It is a nice tool for parents new and not so new.

Answer 2

he should be having the same amount of wet diapers as before and they should be as wet as before; if he is drinking well now and not vomiting, that's probably ok...but, if he is lethargic i would say you need to contact someone before he gets worse; lethargy unless they told u to expect it, isnt a good sign of health....gl

Answer 3

Signs of dehydration include a dry mouth (so the fact that he's drooling is a good sign), few or no tears when crying, sunken eyes, no wet diapers in a 6-8 hour period or fewer than 5 wet diapers a day or if the urine is dark and only passed in small amounts.  

If you start to notice these signs in your infant then you should call his pediatrician immediately.  Otherwise just keep feeding him whenever he's hungry and you may want to give him some pedialyte to help prevent dehydration as well.

Answer 4

His fontanel may appear a bit sunken if he is dehydrated. Check for decreased skin turgor on his abdomen, this link will tell you how http://www.nlm.nih.gov/MEDLINEPLUS/ency/...

Check the colour of his urine, it will be dark if he is dehydrated. There will also be a decrease in urine volume. His mouth and eyes may be dry. Lethargy can also be a sign of dehydration but a virus will also make him lethargic. I agree with you that drooling is a sign that he's not too dehydrated. Just closely monitor his fluid intake. I know it's really scary when your children are ill, even if it's just a cold or fever. Try not to panic but if you need some reassurance just take him to a doctor :)

Answer 5

a doctor showed me a way on my at the time 3 month old son: take his arm and lightly squeeze the skin with your thumb and forefinger (dont pinch too hard you dont want to hurt him) if it bounces right back hes ok and if it goes slowly he may be dehydrated. (test on a fatty part of your arm to see what i mean). Wet diapers are a good sign he isnt as is drooling.Good luck