Dark circles and sunken eyes signify a lack of hydration in your body, which may lead to organ failure or death. Knowing how to treat dehydration may save your life or the life of a loved one. Before you can treat someone who is experiencing dehydration, you need to know what signs to look for.
The Role of Water in Your Body
Water makes up about 70 percent of the solid tissues, organs and muscle in your body which makes hydration imperative for proper body function. Dehydration can cause inadequate elimination of toxins from your body, interfere in distributing nutrients, inhibit oxygenation of the cells in your body, cause lethargy and stop joint lubrication. Dehydration can cause improper balance of electrolytes in your body.
Symptoms
According to the National Institutes of Health, the combination of dark circles under your eyes and sunken eyes signifies a lack of fluid in your body. Other signs of dehydration include dry mouth, lethargy, thirst, a decrease in urine, muscle weakness, headache or dizziness. Seek emergency medical care if you experience confusion, irritability, are not sweating or urinating, if your heart-rate is accelerated or if you experience seizures.
Causes
Dehydration occurs for many reasons but is likely to occur when you experience illness. Intense diarrhea, vomiting, fever and excessive sweating can deplete your body from fluid. Drinking insufficient amounts of water when exposed to heat or during exercise may cause dehydration. Young children, the elderly and people with chronic illnesses are at highest risk of becoming dehydrated.
Prevention
Treatment of mild dehydration encompasses drinking small amounts of fluid frequently instead of forcing large amounts of fluid at one time, which would likely induce vomiting. Electrolyte drinks or ice-pops are effective hydration tools and can be found in pharmacies. Beware of using sports drinks to replenish fluids because they contain sugar and can cause or worsen diarrhea. Depending on the severity of dehydration, intravenous fluids and hospitalization may be necessary.
Examination and Tests
Physicians look for low blood pressure, poor skin elasticity and delayed capillary refill when they are examining for possible dehydration. Laboratory tests that can confirm you are dehydrated include blood chemistries that will check sodium, potassium, and bicarbonate levels. A urine test that measures the specific gravity will show dehydration levels according to how high the test measures. The higher the amount of blood urea nitrogen is, the more dehydrated you are. A complete blood count looks at how concentrated your blood is, which shows a lack of hydration and a elevated creatinine level signifies dehydration.
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