Dehydration

Last winter I had the flu and didnt eat or drink anything for about 2 weeks-----the doc was gunna put me on an IV if I didnt start drinking liquids .----QUESTION-----could I have taken a few slow plain H2O enemas to help the dehydration?

Oh boy, we have gone over this a few times.

Just drink the damn water. It gets quickly absorbed and you'll know what you are absorbing, and when you drink it, 100% gets absorbed.

If you genuinely did not eat or drink anything for two weeks, YOU WOULD BE DEAD.

No, no and no. Drink sips of clear liquids. Clear fruit juice,water or Gatorade. No milk or dairy products and nothing greasy. Take just a small amount and wait for a few moments before taking more. When the vomiting has stopped for 12 hours you can start a BRAT diet. Bananas, rice cereal, applesauce and dry toast. Don't waste your time with enemas.

Oral ingestion of fluids is far more effective physically & medically...Though that is not to say an Enema can also contribute to hydration but nowhere to the extent.

Although rectal hydration is used in extreme cases, I see no major problem in use in the case in question.

Although rectal hydration is used in extreme cases, I see no major problem in use in the case in question.

Rectal hydration ISN'T used in extreme cases.

I.V. hydration is used.

Oh boy, we have gone over this a few times.

Just drink the damn water. It gets quickly absorbed and you'll know what you are absorbing, and when you drink it, 100% gets absorbed.

Susie,

AMEN! LOL!

Rectal hydration ISN'T used in extreme cases.

I.V. hydration is used.

Sounds like A & P, biology with some chemistry needs to be taught again for some here... Just saying...

I think that bootboy's original question was. COULD tap water enemas help with dehydration, not if they were the best way to correct it. All of us have had the experience of having to void many times after an enema session. Obviously, we are absorbing lots of water from the bowel. Yes, absorption of water from the bowel will work, but as has been stated, there are many better ways to handle dehydration.

Rectal hydration ISN'T used in extreme cases.

I.V. hydration is used.

When IV equipment/sterile fluids aren't available and the person isn't able to drink, rectal fluids have been recommended as an emergency alternative. It's far from the best way, but if there is no alternative it's better than nothing. For example here: http://en.hesperian.org/hhg/Where_Women_Have_No_Doctor:How_to_Give_Fluids_to_Treat_Shock is a link to an article from a book on medical care for women in developing countries that lists the technique.

Personally, when I've had norovirus or similar I've sometimes found it really hard to keep down enough fluids to stay hydrated and I've ended up in hospital having IV fluids before now. That happened before I discovered enemas, but if it happened again now I reckon I would try an enema or two if I couldn't keep down water, to see if I could avoid a trip to the hospital. It probably wouldn't work too well if there was concomitant diarrhoea, because that implies impaired water absorption from the bowel, but for vomiting only I could see it potentially working.

The recommended treatment for dehydration is an oral solution of salt sugar and water to make a concentration of normal saline. This is used in developing countries. I have never heard of anyone advocating enemas for fluid replacement. The mainstay of rehydration is intravenous fluid therapy. It is just wishful thinking to imagine using enemas for rehydration. In the 19th century rectal feeding was recommended also. This is patently ridiculous.

I've been an extreme case many times the last few months due to constant sickness from the IV antibiotics . I can honestly say I've never been offered hydration via enemas . I've been hooked to bags of IV fluids and have quickly recovered .

Well clearly IV hydration is by far the superior option if it's available, and if possible oral hydration would also work better. But why wouldn't hydration via enema work? It's impractical, and pointless in most circumstances, and would obviously never be used by medical personnel in any normal circumstances, but I can't think of any reason why it wouldn't, technically, work.Edit: Ah, okay, I see - the original question was more along the lines of "is it a good idea?" Not "would it work at all?" To which I agree with most posters here - no, probably not, given that there are much better options available.

Since I was the poster of this and it seems that a lot of people didnt like this post because I guess it was brought up before. I am sorry that it caused any bad feelings because I didnt see the original posting. I guess I will have to be more diligent to read all the previous posts on any topic that I post in the future. The only reason that I posted it was for future information if I got the flu again.

PS my doc wanted to admit me to the hospital but being a single parent, that was not an option. Instead he gave me a drug that prevented me from throwing up anything I ate or drank. It was called ondansetron odt 4mg.

Bootboy, Your original post asked "could?" and the obvious answer it yes.

However you also got a lot of answer to the question "should?" in which case the answer is no unless that's your only option.

If a person is truly dehydrated, an enema can only replace water slowly. It can't replace salts and electrolytes the body desperately needs.

Bootboy, I'm glad the ondansetron worked so well for you. I was fortunate enough to be on the launch team for "Zofran" (ondansetron). It is an amazing antiemetic. It stopped chemotherapy induced vomiting, in it's tracks!

When that goes on for more than a week, you need to get to the ER. If for no other reason, exactly that, dehydration, and electrolyte imbalance.

For a week? One should seek medical attention if it goes on for more than 24 hours. Why endure it when IV fluids can make you feel so much better. One would risk severe electrolyte imbalance and possible renal failure to wait.

If i take to many enemas in a short time period i retain lots of fluid so i think you could do that

The best way to rehydrate is with oral fluids. If necessary it can be done with intravenous fluids. It is ridiculous to consider rectal fluids.

Has anyone did this? If so, plz let us know what to use and how

I have used an enema to rehydrate a friend that was fighting a wild fire. She took 2 quarts of water, no problem I used a little sait in the water. She was feeling much better by the time the bag was empty.

In my experience the optimal manner for a rehydration will be to take an enema of warm tap water in order to hold this one so long as possible.

Back in 1953 I was 12 and very sick, have been told “almost died”. We lived in a very rural place. Doctor used to come to house. Had visiting nurse come along too. Both had my Mother giving me small enemas with a red bulb of some kind of fluid, is how they kept me alive for well over a week!! Do not know what ailed me. Nobody to check with, all gone, passed away. But remember Mom giving several of those bulb enemas every day. That winter, had to hold them in. Wasn't eating. So nothing solid there to get expelled. Was how they kept me hydrated. So when I got better, and eating again, the change to nurses BIG red enema bag, was almost nothing special. Except for a much fuller tummy, ands stuff to expell!!

This subject jogged a very old memory. Will be 81 in couple days!!!!