 Welcome to Alterations in Fluid Balance Maintaining an appropriate fluid balance is critical to your good health. Water helps us digest our food, absorb nutrients, and get rid of unused waste. In healthy people, water intake is balanced with water loss. However, people can experience imbalances in their fluid levels. As a medical professional, you need to identify the symptoms of fluid volume excess and fluid volume deficit. While there is some variation in people due to age, amount of adipose tissue, and gender, approximately 50 to 60 percent of the average adult's body weight is water. Because fluid level is related to weight, most people maintain a stable fluid balance from day to day. A newborn infant's body weight is between 70 and 80 percent water, which makes small children more prone to fluid and electrolyte loss. As we age, our fluid level drops. 45 to 50 percent of an older adult's body weight is water. Older adults may lose their sense of thirst or take medications that remove excess water from the body. This means they have fewer fluid reserves during illnesses and are at greater risk of dehydration, which is one of the leading causes of hospitalization in older adults. Fluid volume deficit, or FVD, is dehydration or loss of fluids and electrolytes. It may be due to vomiting, diarrhea, excessive sweating, fever, or nasogastric suction. Someone with FVD may feel thirsty, feel dizzy or weak, experience muscle cramping, have decreased blood pressure, decreased urine output, or have a headache. Fluid volume excess, or FVE, is caused by fluid overload or fluid retention. The body retains water and sodium. Some causes include kidney failure, heart failure, or cirrhosis. Someone with FVE may have moist crackles, rails in the lungs, swelling in their feet, ankles or wrists, have high blood pressure, or have difficulty breathing. Understanding fluid balance is important for all medical professionals. Knowing what a stable fluid balance means and what can cause deficits and excesses are key to helping patients. You have completed alterations in fluid balance.