Recently, I have been receiving an increasing number of calls on the Moul Mouj Toll-Free Helpline, along with a growing number of elderly patients visiting the Moul Mouj Health Centre. Their families sound worried. “Doctor, my father has become unusually irritable.” “My mother is not sleeping well.” “She is refusing to eat.” “He suddenly feels dizzy while standing.” “She seems confused and forgets familiar things.” “He is speaking less than usual.” Some even fear the worst—has dementia suddenly worsened? Is it a stroke? Is something serious happening?

After carefully evaluating many of these elderly patients, the answer has often been surprisingly simple.Dehydration.Yes, dehydration—the least talked about, most underestimated, and one of the commonest reasons older adults become unwell during summer. We usually associate dehydration with children playing outside or people working in the sun. Rarely do we think of our ageing parents quietly becoming dehydrated while sitting comfortably inside their homes. That is what makes it dangerous.Dehydration simply means the body has lost more water than it has taken in. Every day we lose water through sweat, urine, breathing and even through our skin, known as invisible loss. During hot weather, these losses increase significantly. Young people usually........

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