The short answer
- Older people need more fluid, not lessThe daily minimum is higher for women and men in later life than the general guidance most people know, and it does not fall with age.
- Widen what counts as a drinkMilk, juice, tea, soup and water-rich food all count. It does not have to be glass after glass of plain water.
- How it is served matters as much as what it isThe right temperature, the right cup, and a drink left within easy reach all make a real difference to how much gets drunk.
- A refusal usually has a reason behind itWorry about the toilet, a fading sense of thirst, or a medication side effect each need a different fix, so work out which one applies before trying to change the habit.
Women need at least 1,600ml (about 3 pints) of fluid a day and men at least 2,000ml (about 3½ pints), according to the British Dietetic Association's guidance for older adults.
The daily target
How much fluid an older relative needs each day
Before trying to change what your relative drinks, it helps to know what you are aiming for. The target for older people is higher than the figure most people have half-remembered from somewhere, not lower.
NHS guidance for the general population is to aim for six to eight cups or glasses of fluid a day, and it counts water, lower-fat milk and sugar-free drinks, including tea and coffee, as part of that total. The British Dietetic Association sets a higher minimum for older adults specifically.
1,600ml
Minimum for women
About 3 pints a day
2,000ml
Minimum for men
About 3½ pints a day
6–8
Cups or glasses a day
The general NHS guide, from any of the drinks above
British Dietetic Association, hydration in older adults, and NHS Eatwell guidance. Figures are a minimum unless a GP has advised otherwise for a specific condition.
That target does not fall as somebody gets older, even though appetite and thirst often do. As people age, the sensation of thirst becomes less reliable, so an older person can be dehydrated without feeling thirsty at all. That is one of the reasons dehydration is common and easy to miss in later life, and why offering a drink on a routine works better than waiting for your relative to ask for one. How serious is dehydration in the elderly? sets out what happens if it goes unaddressed, and what are the symptoms of dehydration in the elderly? covers the signs to watch for, since thirst and urine colour are not reliable guides in older age either.
Widening what's on offer
Filling the day with more than one kind of drink
Plain water is not the only thing that counts, and treating it as though it is makes the job harder than it needs to be. Milk, juice, tea, soup and water-rich food all move the day's total forward.
Water, lower-fat milk and sugar-free drinks including tea and coffee are all treated the same by NHS guidance, so there is no need to push water specifically if your relative would rather have a cup of tea, a glass of milk or a squash. Does tea count as water intake? looks at the tea question in more detail, including the old worry about caffeine, which turns out not to hold up at ordinary drinking levels.
Soups and broths are worth using more than most families do. A bowl of soup is mostly water by weight, so it adds a proper amount of fluid alongside a meal rather than asking for a separate drink to be finished on top. Fruit and vegetables work the same way. A slice of watermelon, a few cucumber slices with lunch or a tomato in a salad all add water to the day without your relative noticing they are drinking anything at all.
- A cup of broth-based soup97%
- Cucumber95%
- Tomato94%
- Watermelon91%
- Semi-skimmed milk90%
- An orange87%
USDA FoodData Central, water content by weight.
None of this needs to be exact. The point is that a reluctant drinker still has several routes to the same target, and moving between them, a cup of tea here, a bowl of soup there, a slice of melon after lunch, usually gets further than repeating the same glass of water and hoping for a different result. Nutrition and hydration for the elderly covers eating and drinking well together, if food more broadly is the wider concern.
Serving it well
Serving drinks the way they will take them
How a drink is served changes how much of it gets drunk, often more than what the drink is. Two small habits, temperature and reach, account for most of the difference.
What tends to work
- A warm drink for someone who has always preferred tea to a cold glass of water, and vice versa
- A favourite mug or cup, which is often drunk from without a second thought
- A filled cup left within easy reach, on the arm of the chair or the bedside table
- A small amount offered often, rather than a full glass offered rarely
- A drink offered at the same points every day, alongside meals and tablets
What tends to fail
- Insisting on plain water when a warm drink or a milky one would be taken more readily
- An unfamiliar tumbler or a full jug that feels like too much to get through
- A drink left across the room, which older hands and knees may not manage to fetch
- A large glass that looks like a chore rather than a small one that looks manageable
- Waiting for your relative to ask, when a fading sense of thirst means they may not
None of this is about persuading somebody to drink something they dislike. It is closer to removing the small obstacles, an unreachable cup, an unfamiliar mug, a drink at the wrong temperature, that get in the way of a habit your relative would otherwise keep up on their own.
Matching the reason to the fix
Working out why they are drinking less, and what helps
A relative who has cut back on fluids usually has a reason, even if it has not been said out loud. Finding it changes what helps.
| What might be behind it | What tends to help | |
|---|---|---|
| Worried about needing the toilet, or about incontinence | Worried about needing the toilet, or about incontinence | Explain that drinking less makes urine more concentrated and irritates the bladder more, not less. NHS guidance on incontinence is to keep drinking through the day and cut down only in the hour or two before bed. |
| Simply forgetting to drink | Simply forgetting to drink | Offer a drink at set points in the day rather than waiting to be asked, and keep a filled cup within reach the whole time, not just at mealtimes. |
| A fading sense of thirst | A fading sense of thirst | Common with age, and it means thirst cannot be relied on as a warning sign. A routine of offered drinks matters more than waiting to be asked for one. |
| A side effect of medication, such as a dry mouth or a diuretic | A side effect of medication, such as a dry mouth or a diuretic | Ask the GP or pharmacist at the next review rather than guessing. Do not stop or change a prescribed medicine without asking first. |
| Difficulty swallowing safely | Difficulty swallowing safely | A sign to see the GP rather than a habit to work around. They can refer to a speech and language therapist, who may suggest a thickened drink or a different way of serving fluids. |
| Dementia disrupting the routine of eating and drinking | Dementia disrupting the routine of eating and drinking | A drink left out of sight is often a drink that goes untouched. Smaller, more frequent offers, in a cup they recognise, tend to work better than a large glass once or twice a day. |
Worried about needing the toilet, or about incontinence
- What might be behind it
- Worried about needing the toilet, or about incontinence
- What tends to help
- Explain that drinking less makes urine more concentrated and irritates the bladder more, not less. NHS guidance on incontinence is to keep drinking through the day and cut down only in the hour or two before bed.
Simply forgetting to drink
- What might be behind it
- Simply forgetting to drink
- What tends to help
- Offer a drink at set points in the day rather than waiting to be asked, and keep a filled cup within reach the whole time, not just at mealtimes.
A fading sense of thirst
- What might be behind it
- A fading sense of thirst
- What tends to help
- Common with age, and it means thirst cannot be relied on as a warning sign. A routine of offered drinks matters more than waiting to be asked for one.
A side effect of medication, such as a dry mouth or a diuretic
- What might be behind it
- A side effect of medication, such as a dry mouth or a diuretic
- What tends to help
- Ask the GP or pharmacist at the next review rather than guessing. Do not stop or change a prescribed medicine without asking first.
Difficulty swallowing safely
- What might be behind it
- Difficulty swallowing safely
- What tends to help
- A sign to see the GP rather than a habit to work around. They can refer to a speech and language therapist, who may suggest a thickened drink or a different way of serving fluids.
Dementia disrupting the routine of eating and drinking
- What might be behind it
- Dementia disrupting the routine of eating and drinking
- What tends to help
- A drink left out of sight is often a drink that goes untouched. Smaller, more frequent offers, in a cup they recognise, tend to work better than a large glass once or twice a day.
Two of these are worth a closer look. If worry about the toilet is behind a drop in drinking, cutting back on fluids makes the problem worse rather than better: NHS guidance on urinary incontinence is to keep drinking through the day and only ease off in the couple of hours before bed. And if a medication is suspected, the answer is a conversation with the GP or pharmacist rather than a guess; elderly medicine: getting medication right has more on reviewing what your relative takes and why.
Why might an older person be reluctant to drink fluids? goes further into the reasons behind a refusal, if the table above does not match what you are seeing. If dementia is part of the picture, dementia care covers the wider day-to-day changes that can come with it, including changes to eating and drinking.
When to get help
Knowing when to call the GP, and how a regular visit helps
Most of the time, wider variety and a better routine are enough. Sometimes they are not, and knowing what to do next matters.
- 1
Watch for the signs that it has gone further
OngoingA dry mouth, low energy, confusion or dizziness are worth acting on rather than waiting it out, because thirst and urine colour are not reliable guides in older age. - 2
Call the GP or NHS 111 if you are concerned
Same dayA GP can check for an underlying cause, such as a medication or an infection, and advise on how much your relative should be drinking. If they seem seriously unwell, confused, or have not passed urine for eight hours or more, treat it as urgent. - 3
Ask about a regular visit built around meals and drinks
Ongoing supportA carer who calls at the same times each day gets to know what is normal for your relative and notices sooner when a drink is being left untouched. Companion carers on PrimeCarers charge £15 to £20 an hour with our fee included, and a lunchtime or afternoon visit fits this kind of routine well.
What are the symptoms of dehydration in the elderly? has the fuller list of signs, and what to do if an elderly person is dehydrated sets out the immediate steps if it has already set in. How much does a companion carer cost? sets out what a regular visit looks like and what it costs, if extra support during the day is something you are weighing up alongside everything else.
Questions
Questions families ask about getting an older relative to drink more
The British Dietetic Association's minimum for older adults is at least 1,600ml (about 3 pints) a day for women and 2,000ml (about 3½ pints) for men, from ordinary drinks and water-rich food together. That works out at roughly eight ordinary drinks spread through the day for a woman, and a couple more for a man.
Tea and coffee count fully towards the daily total. NHS guidance treats them the same as water, and research comparing tea against water at ordinary drinking levels found no meaningful difference in hydration. Does tea count as water intake? covers the evidence in full.
Soup and broth are mostly water by weight, and fruit and vegetables such as cucumber, tomatoes, watermelon and melon are all high in water. None of them replace drinks entirely, but they add to the day's total without asking your relative to get through another glass.
That cutting back makes it worse, not better. Concentrated urine irritates the bladder more, and NHS guidance is to keep drinking through the day and only cut back in the couple of hours before bed. If the underlying problem is not being managed well, a GP can help with that separately.
Yes. The sensation of thirst becomes less reliable with age, which is one of the reasons dehydration is common and easy to miss in later life. It means a drink is better offered on a routine than left for your relative to ask for.
If a dry mouth, low energy, confusion or dizziness appear, or if the drop in drinking has lasted more than a day or two despite trying the ideas here. What are the symptoms of dehydration in the elderly? has the fuller list, and if your relative seems seriously unwell or confused, treat it as urgent rather than waiting to see.
Yes. A carer who visits at the same times each day builds a picture of what is normal and notices sooner when a drink has gone untouched, in a way an occasional visit cannot. Companion carers on PrimeCarers charge £15 to £20 an hour with our fee included. How much does a companion carer cost? has the detail.