Tips to avoid dehydration in Western Pa.'s extreme heat

As temperatures hover around the 90s, health experts are stressing the importance of staying hydrated and taking precautions against the summer heat.

Dr. Brent Rau, medical director for Allegheny Health Network’s Department of Emergency Medicine, said there’s no set amount of water to drink that will stop someone from becoming dehydrated.

“It is really difficult to say how much water to drink,” he said. “It’s about limiting sun exposure and replenishing afterward.”

Water alternatives can be helpful in high temperatures as well, Rau said. His recommended best option is Pedialyte.

It “doesn’t taste good, but it’s not loaded in sugar,” he said.

Sports drinks such as Gatorade are fine as well, Rau said, but only as long as they don’t have a lot of sugar.

Electrolyte packets like Propel or Liquid IV are popular, and he agreed they might help fend off dehydration. However, electrolytes won’t prevent dehydration overall.

Since the weekend, Rau said Allegheny Health Network has treated at least 40 people for heat-related issues.

Hospitals throughout the Western Pennsylvania said early this week there’s been a spike in patients with heat-related emergencies.

At UPMC, the region’s largest hospital network, Dr. Donald Yealy, chief medical officer, said the number of people with heat-affected illnesses had gone up “dramatically.”

Younger and older people are at higher risk, he said, and they should increase their fluid intake.

However, fluids like soda and alcohol should be avoided because they dehydrate, according to Rau.

“Alcohol is especially dangerous because people do not notice they are starting to get dehydrated.”