Heat stroke isn't cool...

[gandalf]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

A word of caution is in order when it comes to "sports drinks." All of these drinks are full of sugar and are not recommended for people with Diabetes or people with a borderline case of the disease. Most folks just need good, cool water and a few forced breaks. I am goal oriented and have a tendency to work myself to death at times- even when there's no reason to. Remember that once a person has had a heat stroke, he'll never be the same again when working in hot-humid weather. Slow down and smell the roses-cows, whatever! Sam /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

"I love the smell of diesel in the morning."
Cummins powered 24V Dodge Rams rule!

 

[MChalkley]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Being a certified card-carrying nut, I've approached this hydration and electrolyte-replacement business with the zeal of the "born again".

My good friend Jack (not my good friend JackinIL who contributes to this board) is diabetic and can't use the sports drinks, and I have no intention of consuming that much sugar, even though I'm not diabetic, so I've experimented with ways to use Dr. RCH's formula without the sugar, for both of us.

As it turns out, sugar-free Tang works well, as do the various flavors of Crystal Light. There are also a few flavors of sugar-free Cool-Aid that work well. I find that I have to mix it a tad stronger than the package directions to keep the flavor strong enough to suit me. For my 52-oz. cup, I usually put the whole 2 quarts amount of mix in. Depending on how much I'm eating (when it's really hot I don't have any appetite) I'll make every third or fourth batch out of regular Cool-Aid with Karo syrup for calories.

I put the pre-measured amounts of dry ingredients together into 35mm film canisters, so I can just dump it in my behemoth cup, fill it with cold water and swish it around. The Karo syrup goes into a squeeze ketchup bottle for easy dispensing, and I just guess at the amount after having practiced it a couple of times at home with a measuring spoon.

I was able to "rehearse" the process during a two-day project last Friday and Saturday and it worked extremely well. Jack drank quite a bit of it and thought it tasted good and he said he thought he felt better, too. It wasn't as hot as it was when I got the heat stroke, but it was upper 80's with 100% humidity. I sweated profusely all day long both days, but didn't have any problems and felt great, with no after-effects. As far as I'm concerned, the stuff works and I've got a manageable system. Next week, I'll be working on another 6-day project, so that'll be the acid test, assuming the weather is hot enough, of course.

MarkC

 

[MarkV]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Mark,

You take it easy, it takes a long time for the body to come back 100%. Know your a smart guy and will be watching close. Can't have our R&D department down again.

MarkV

 

[MChalkley]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Mark (great name!) - Thanks for the kind words. I know you're right about it taking a while to get back to 100%. I noticed Friday and Saturday that I can sweat about as much looking at work now as I used to when doing it. At least, I don't think it's my imagination. You can bet I'm being a lot more careful these days - there are some things you don't need to repeat.

MarkC

 

[Rch]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Mark, glad to hear of your experience with the "Replenishment Formula". Pee pale and stay isotonic!
Dr RCH

RCH

 

[MChalkley]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

RCH - On a separate but very related subject, are there any known side effects to worry about from consuming large quantities of NutraSweet?

I'm starting another 7-day project next Monday, and figure on practically drowning myself in fluids if it's hot, so I was just curious.

MarkC

 

[Rch]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Re Nutrasweet; I don't specifically know the answer to your ?. The rule with toxicity is "what is the dose"- everything is toxic at some dose.For example, plain water can be toxic if enough is consumed so that electrolytes become diluted (or drowning!) I'll look into Nutrasweet's toxicities after I return from a conference next week. However, I've never heard of a clinical situation of over- dose with Nutrasweet.This being readily available, the FDA would be super conservative on this point.

RCH

 

[MChalkley]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

RCH - Thanks! I know all about how toxic water can be!

When I say large amounts, I'm talking about in aggregate, not in concentration, of course. I just meant that if you drink two gallons of liquids sweetened with Nutrasweet per day, does it pose a risk because of the total amount consumed, even though the solution is at the normal (or lower) concentration?

Thanks again for all your help.

MarkC

 

[Harv]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Just wanted to thank MarkC and all who contributed to this thread. The information presented here prompted me to make a small change to my outdoor work habits, with fairly dramatic results.

Yesterday I was up at "the property", putting in yet another stint of manual labor, making preparations for that tractor path I keep talking about. From 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. I was out waging battle with my simple non-tractor tools, whacking weeds, cutting and hauling small trees, clearing brush, even moving a few good-sized boulders.

Although not in the Texas category of heat, the mercury hit 90+ degrees by early afternoon and I was doing my usual "toughing-it-out" routine -- busting my hump and just taking the occasional sip of soda. This time, however, due entirely to what was said on this thread, I forced myself to stroll back to the house once every hour for a tall glass of Gatorade. The brief pause in an air-conditioned house was refreshing in itself, but it's what I noticed later that really counts.

On prior workdays like this (and there have been many), I was totally wasted at the end of the day, barely able to stay awake long enough to drag myself into bed (after the 2-1/2 hour drive home), and on the following day I was always pretty much useless -- groggy, sluggish, etc. I was chalking it up to the fact that I'm in my second half-century now and that's just the way things are.     Wrong!!!

This time, after consuming a total of a couple of quarts of Gatorade (all of which went down quite easily, by the way), I was not only not wasted at the end of the day, but almost invigorated. The real test came the next morning at the gym (us computer types need some excercise to stay in shape). Instead of that weary swimming-in-syrup feeling I was expecting, I was just fine. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif In fact, the only after-effects I noticed from that fairly grueling day's work in the sun was sore feet (I think it's time to replace my 25-year old work boots).

I don't know how to explain it other than assuming the Gatorade did the trick. This is a big deal to me, 'cuz among other things it means I'm not as old as I thought I was (some of you out there know exactly what I'm talking about /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif).

So thanks again all of you, and I hope somewhere down the line I can help at least one person as much as you have helped me.

 

[dmccarty]

Re: Heat stroke isn\'t cool...

Here are some other tips I have found that help me. Besides
the proper hydration and rest, I force myself to eat at least every two hours or so, if not every hour. I eat a
granola type of snack, calling it granola is kinda insulting
since it has walnuts, dried blueberrys, raisens, etc., and tastes better the granola!

I don't drink the sports drinks since they usually make me sick on the stomach but I drink lots of water. One work session this summer in high heat and humidty I averaged a half liter of water every hour.

Lately I'm working with a chainsaw. I DO NOT PUSH myself when working the chainsaw. If I find myself getting sloppy or tired I stop. Usually I can work until the fuel runs out of the saw, 45-60 minutes, but on the really hot days I might last only 30 minutes and then its break time. I wear safety pants when using the saw, and to keep off the ticks and chiggers, I wear long pants and long sleave shirts. This gets a bit hot!

The other item that seems to help the muscles is to stretch during and after work. But the big helper seems to be a boost in protein. I'll have big breakfast heavy in protein.
The granola is heavy in protein because of the nuts and I'll try to have a dinner that is heavy on protien. If I can, I'll have a protein drink with 30grams before bedtime.
I've found that after heavy workouts either from running, labor or weight training, boosting protein for 24-48 hours after the event helps to ease any post work/labor pains.

My rules are....
- Pleny of water so I have to pee often.
- Eat every hour, two hours at the most.
- Rest every hour when using power equipment.
- Eat lots of protein before, during, and after work.
- Be very very very careful....