How much water should an 87-year-old lady be drinking each day?

I have a 92 year old mom who is experiencing dementia like symptoms due to her being dehydrated, and having constant utis she is totally non compliant with everythng and does not listen. she seems to have short term memory loss. i have tried everything with the water, flavoring it etc. do not know what else to do. any suggestions???

Jeanne, excellent advice "Try to keep the rest of her life as pleasant as it can be!"

That one small piece of advice can be useful for anyone, anytime. I am going to borrow it and post on 'what's on my mind'. You are one wise one!

I read somewhere that people with dementia may not be able to see water well... In a glass or in the shower...so I'm putting a bit of orange juice into my parent's water glass. Straws seem to make drinking more successful. Because she has trouble drinking 8 oz at a time, I am encouraging soups and fruits with high water content.

Shorty40, it is generally better to post your own question separately, to get the most responses.

It sounds like either grandpa isn't actually taking the pill or it is not sufficient for the problem. Do you observe him taking the pill? Can you figure out from the number of pills left in the bottle and the date of the prescription whether he is taking them every day?

His symptoms need to be discussed with his doctor, and the doctor needs to know whether he is really taking the pills.

My mother said she took her pills, but a bottle of pills that was supposed to last a month was not empty at the end of three months.

GrandpaHiker, in my opinion the most important thing at this point is to prevent the recurring infections. If it takes another pill to do that, so be it. Her doctor is the best person to discuss that with. (Obviously getting opinions from others who have been through this is good background for that discussion.)

If you can encourage mom to take in more fluid, great! Popcycles, tea, iced tea, coffee, fruit juice, half-juice/half-soda water, and fruits. How about soup for lunch nearly every day? I hope watermelon for my husband even in the ridiculously expensive off season because he loved it and it has a high water content. If you can increase her fluid intake without making a fuss about it, wonderful!

But, again just my opinion, turning this into a contest of wills would be about as bad as having constant infections.

Try to keep the rest of her life as pleasant as it can be.

My grandpa has been taking a water pill every day to get rid of the water retention but it ends up that he has swollen ankles and feet. What should I do?

deontrae, normal phase of dementia probably.I bought unstrippable pajamas online, then made some.you can google them, got mine at buck and buck for my mother. send me a message if you need more help, good luck.

Why does my motherinlaw pull her pants halfway down in bed and what can or is there any thing I can do.

Hi GrandpaHiker, glad to help. My Mom isnt on blood thinners. Just remembering , Bactrim was once prescribed for her and she was acting crazy on it so we switched to the amoxicillin. I since asked a CNA about it and she said a lot of people in nursing homes have a problem with bactrim also. I wouldnt get it if you can avoid it. We get the amoxicillin thru the mail order so I always have plenty and use when I feel she needs it. She is on 250mg daily and I give it after supper when her belly is full. Moms 90, I am not worried about her having too many antibiotics, lol. IF I can help you with anything else, just ask. Good luck!

Reverseroles, thanks for your reply. I am supposed to take my mom to her doctor tomorrow. He wants to put her on a maintenance antibiotic. I don't know what drug he has in mind, but I'll mentiion the amox to him.

Is your mom on any type of blood thinner (Warfarin or Coumadin)? I found that amox increased the effect of blood thinner. So I guess if we go that route we would reduce the Warfarin dosage. Of course she has PT/INR blood tests on a average of twice monthly.

I asked the dr this question for my mom who is 90. he said 3 cups a day. Mom has decaf tea 2x and decaf coffee every morning. my mother is also on one amoxicillin daily as a preventative and if I think she has another uti i give the amox 3 x daily for 5 days and then one daily again. its been a lifesavor for us not having to get urine samples. lots of fluid isnt going to stop a uti if for some reason the area is damp or gets feces near her areas, just keep on top of her cleanliness and keep her on an antibiotic. after all, at their age, it cant hurt.

My 81 year old mom has dementia and didn't want to drink water. I made a daily schedule form to structure our day and included a check box section at the end with the correct number of boxes for the day, corresponding to the number of glasses of water. One line for each member of our household. (Our NP advised 8-8 oz glasses per day.) When a glass is emptied the box can be checked. Mom likes to stay in the lead if she can. If she gets behind or doesn't feel like drinking her water, I make an excuse to go do something or other, before I can work on my water; she gets a sneaky grin and quickly starts drinking her water before I come back. Once a glass is emptied, I refill immediately.If she really refuses or says "you are so hard on me" or the like, I remind her that the doctor said if she doesn't get that water in, she'll end up with perm. kidney damage and /or UTI's, and then tell her it's up to her to pick what she prefers--water or illness. We all endeavor to drink the full amount. If she falls really short one day, we make a point to get to goal the next. We give positive reinforcements frequently and occaisionally tangible rewards for being a good water drinker. She thrives on the attention and we are all drinking more water. If she complains about too many trips to the bathroom, we just make that a big pitty party joke-life is so hard, I'd much rather have a UTI or kidney damage than hike to the next room to use the bathroom. Life is so tough! I bet you had to walk 5 mi. to school, both ways up hill. Poor you. If you and your mom live in different households, each household could track their consumption and compare over the phone, daily or weekly, for entertainment, engagement and support. Who wants to take more med's.? None of us if water will do the job. Hope you find something that works for you. Try to leave reason out of it. What is motivating for your family member? Work with that. Hope you find something that works for your mom.

After weeks of explaining I thought I'd tell her not ask her. I brought a tumbler of water and said "drink this". Ended up with water all over me. I added cranberry extract to the meds and so far okay.

My dad has dementia & will not understand what needs to be done. I would tell her over & over she needs to drink the water to flush the infection & the more she pees the better she will feel. What's her favorite beverage? Maybe juice would be more appealing than water. My dad did not drink water until he came to live with us. We discovered he loves Dr. Pepper, so we started with that. Now he drinks water with his meals & when he takes his pills, but still has a Dr. Pepper a day. Good luck to you :)