Why We Use Hydration IV Bags


Why We Use Hydration IV Bags


a blog by My Emergency Room Abilene

Why We Use Hydration IV Bags

Did you know that staying hydrated is just as important as eating healthy and exercising? Dehydration can cause a number of negative side effects on the body, but in an extreme case it can even lead to death.

For those who are recovering from surgery or an illness, drinking enough water is not always feasible. Thankfully, there are other ways to get hydration -- specifically with the use of an IV bag. IV bags are used for fluids that the patient wouldn’t be able to normally consume.

They can be used for a variety of things, such as hydration and IV nutrition therapy for patients who need to gain weight before going into surgery or cancer patients who need additional nutrition before chemotherapy begins.

These bags are often filled with saline and nutrients (such as vitamins A, B12, C, D, E) that help improve a patient's health and well-being. Read on to learn more about hydration IV bags and how they work...

What is a Hydration IV Bag?
When doctors and medical professionals use “hydration” to describe an IV bag, they’re referring to its ability to hydrate patients who are dehydrated.

Hydration IV bags contain saline and nutrients that help your body rehydrate and get back on track with bodily functions, such as digestion and metabolism. While most Hydration IVs are thought purely to replace lost water they can also replace other things like electrolytes.

A Brief History of Hydration Therapy
The earliest forms of hydration therapy date back to ancient times, when people used moss and seaweed as natural remedies to hydrate themselves. However, the modern approach to hydration therapy didn’t arise until after World War II.

At this time, doctors were treating soldiers who were severely dehydrated from their time at war. For the next several decades, the medical field relied solely on IV bags filled with fluids to provide hydration for patients who needed it. In the mid-2000s, a wide range of oral hydration products were developed to address the need for hydration that wasn’t necessarily severe.

When Should You Consider Using an IV Bag?
In most cases an IV bag will be handled by a professional, please do not apply an IV bag to yourself or anyone else before consulting a professional.

A few instances where hydration through an IV bag would be necessary include if you’re undergoing surgery and will have an incision that would make it difficult to swallow, you’re experiencing nausea and vomiting, or you’re going through chemotherapy and receiving treatment that makes it difficult to swallow.

In some cases, such as with chemotherapy, it would be almost impossible to drink enough water or other fluids to stay hydrated.

In other situations, such as with surgery, you may be in too much pain or be too nauseated to drink.

What’s In a Hydration IV Bag?
There are a few different ingredients that show up in hydration IV bags. A bag filled with saline alone would only be able to hydrate a patient.

To make it a full IV bag, you’d need to add vitamins and minerals like Vitamin A, B12, C, D, and E in order to make the IV bag effective. These vitamins help the body work like normal and can make the recovery process of a patient more smooth.

In the case that a patient wouldn’t be able to acquire those vitamins via oral consumption, an IV would be used.

How Does a Hydration IV Bag Work?
IV stands for intravenous, meaning that the needle attached to the Hydration Bag is inserted into your vein. After you’re hooked up to the bag, the saline and nutrients travel through the line and into your veins. Finally, the nutrients and saline are absorbed into the bloodstream allowing your body to get full use of them.

When We Use a Hydration IV Bag as a Medical Institute
In the medical field, IVs are used to supply necessary nutrients to the body. There are two prominent scenarios in which they are used: during surgery when a patient would be unconscious, or during recovery when the patient is incapable of consuming the nutrients normally. In some cases, a patient will be hooked up to an IV bag for 24 hours straight.

Conclusion
We hope that you’ve enjoyed this guide to hydration IV bags and learned a lot along the way!

Hydration is an important part of staying healthy, but it can be difficult to get enough fluids when you’re feeling under the weather.

Thankfully, hydration IV bags make it easy to get the fluids you need. When you or someone you love is in need of hydration, be sure to reach out to your medical provider for guidance on how to receive it most effectively.