Uruguay is facing a serious water crisis and its effects are visible in at least three departments of that country.

Almost a week ago, the government agreed to give groups of vulnerable sectors money to buy water. Those who lived in the departments of Montevideo and Canelones and were pregnant and children up to two years old would receive in money equivalent to two liters of water per day per person.

The beneficiaries of the chronically ill program of the Ministry of Social Development would also receive the money.

Uruguay’s Health Ministry, in collaboration with medical chairmen, asked the people of Montevideo on Tuesday to “avoid adding salt to food” because of the increase in sodium content in tap water, a measure aimed at guaranteeing supplies against drought.

The list is divided into recommendations for the general population, those taking antihypertensive drugs and diuretics, and those who are pregnant or have chronic kidney disease, heart failure, or cirrhosis.

For the general group, he advises maintaining usual consumption of water which, he says, “could come entirely from OSE” (State Sanitation Works) and asks that no salt be added to the food of children under 2 years, to use mineral water for baby bottles of infants and regularly check blood pressure above 60 years.

The second group is asked to reduce the consumption of foods with excess sodium “to the maximum” – indicated by an octagon by the Uruguayan labeling law – and to consume up to one liter of TOSE water per day, with the daily consumption is completed with mineral water.

For the third, meanwhile, it indicates that you should “as far as possible” avoid the use of OSE water “on the advice of your treating physician” and should drink no more than one liter per day if you drink it hand in hand with a greater frequency of pressure checks . .

The situation has not changed positively for a week and this Monday asked Montevideo’s mayor, Carolina Cosse, to declare the alert situation as it is feared that if the rains do not arrive, there will be no supplies for 20 to 30 days.

Cosse pointed out that he thought it wise for people not to use running water and for the VAT on bottled water to be abolished and the import of water to be facilitated.