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How do rehydration formulas help children with diarrhea?

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Infographic showing estimated lives saved by childhood vaccinations worldwide from 1974 to 2024, with syringe-shaped bars for each disease. Measles tops the list at 93.71 million lives saved, followed by tetanus, whooping cough, and others, for a total of 153.84 million lives saved. — childhood disease and disorder Vaccines and the estimates of lives saved over the period 1974–2024.

When children suffer from diarrhea, they lose critical fluids and electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium, which can lead to life-threatening dehydration. Oral rehydration therapy (ORT) effectively replenishes these losses through a simple, salt-and-sugar-based solution.1

The mechanism of this treatment relies on a synergistic biological process:
* Glucose absorption: The presence of sugar or glucose makes the absorption of salt into the intestine significantly more efficient.1
* Water retention: Once salt is absorbed, it promotes the movement of water into the intestinal walls, effectively rehydrating the body.1

This therapy is highly effective, reversing dehydration in over 90 percent of patients with acute diarrhea. By providing a simple, accessible way to replace lost fluids, ORT has been instrumental in drastically reducing the global mortality rate among children under five.12