Dehydration occurs when the body's fluid stores drop too low.
Children are particularly susceptible to dehydration, because their fluid stores are often more rapidly depleted than adults'. Determine how dehydrated your child is, and get a rough idea of how much fluid is going in and out. You can assess hydration by looking at a child's mouth, eyes, fingers and behavior. In mild dehydration, the mouth may get slightly dry, and urine output may decrease slightly, but a child should still have non-sunken eyes, warm pink fingers and responsiveness to you. Parents can usually manage mild dehydration at home.