Considering a Hydration Pack For Your Children

With summer in full swing across the northern hemisphere, the heat is on and in many places the temperatures have been record breaking. As a consequence, health authorities and others have been issuing a seemingly endless stream of warnings and advisories about how to handle the heat and avoiding heat related medical problems like dehydration, heat exhaustion and even heat stroke. Although many people do not realize it, heat related medical conditions can be very dangerous and many hundreds of people even end up dying from them each year around the world. Therefore, in the heat of the summer, it is very prudent to listen to all the warnings and follow their advice about staying cool.

Children, however, present a special problem when it comes to avoiding heat related medical conditions. The simple fact of the matter is that children tend to play at full capacity and exert all their energy, meaning that by the time they realize something is wrong the problem has already become very serious. Further, kids have a habit of ignoring basic warnings, like stopping to stay hydrated during play. There are a number of ways of addressing this, but one idea that many parents overlook is the idea of a hydration pack.

Beyond the fact that a hydration pack offers a great way to keep your children hydrated as they play out in the heat, the fact that they a cool devices that children like to wear and use means that they are much more likely to keep themselves hydrated without supervision. More often than not, when presented with a hydration pack, most kids genuinely like the device and consider it something of a fun toy and enjoy drinking through the bite valve.

Obviously, children are smaller than most adults and require hydration packs that are designed to work with their size. As a consequence, there are now a number of different lines of hydration packs that have been specially designed for children (and/or petite adults). Some of these smaller hydration packs are simply a variation in a larger line of products, like those sold by Jansport or Dakine. However, other companies have decided to hop into this niche market aggressively, like Platypus and Kelty.

Among those to aggressively go after this niche market is Camelbak, the hydration pack market leader. Camelback has always issued very specialized packs for assorted sports, for assorted outdoor conditions, and for assorted types of people – including children. Right now, Camelbak offers four different hydration packs designed for children: the Jibber, the Mini MULE, the Scout, and the Skeeter.  These Camelbak packs are a bit more expensive than some of the other alternatives on the market, but they are also much higher quality and much more likely to survive as much wear and tear as your children can inflict on them.

If your children like to play outside – especially in the heat of the summer – then buying a hydration pack for them is well worth considering. Generally speaking, children tend to love them and as a consequence they also use them; helping to ensure that they stay well hydrated through the dog days of summer.