Dehydration caused by diarrhoea is the biggest single killer
of children in the modern world and diarrhoea itself is one of the major causes of
nutritional loss and poor growth.
Now, dehydration can be prevented and nutritional losses minimized by a revolutionary new
technique called Oral Rehydration therapy (ORT). To prevent dehydration, oral rehydration
salts can be made at home from ordinary household ingredients.
To prevent - or treat - dehydration, sachets of the salts made up to precise WHO/UNICEF
formula now cost only a few cents each. But the problem is how to make them available to
millions of parents through out the world.
The
sachets, says UNICEF, should be household items - available form every corner shop like
soap, batteries, razor-blades or Coca-Cola.
