Miller County Newsletters
Haley's Comment
It’s Important to Keep Hydrated
August 29, 2007
As students’ head back to school, sports practice continues whether it is
football, fall baseball or volleyball we continue to work in the yard, it’s
evident that summer is here. Hopefully, you won’t let the heat sneak up on you
and will take the right precautions.
The first rule of protecting yourself against the heat is to drink plenty of
water. Most people rely on thirst to tell them to drink, but if you wait until
you’re thirsty, your body is already dehydrated. You will need to drink until
the thirst is quenched and then, drink a few more gulps. This will re-hydrate
you adequately. If you are active in the heat, you should drink at least 10 to
12 eight-ounce cups of fluid a day. Most active people lose more than 20 cups of
fluid a day.
You should be especially concerned about fluid if you or your children
participate in sports. Ball practice is here, and you can ensure the safety of
your child by making a conscious effort to get your child to drink enough water.
It is important to stress the importance of water to both child and coach.
Encourage your child to drink two cups of water two hours before practice or
outdoor activities, to promote adequate hydration. It’s also a good idea for
coaches to mandate players to drink about four liters of fluid during practice;
otherwise they may not drink enough. Larger volumes of fluid intake during
exercise are associated with greater cardiac output, greater skin blood flow,
lower core temperature and a reduced rating of perceived exertion.
When taking in fluids, only use water or sports drinks. Avoid caffeinated,
highly-sweetened and carbonated beverages. These have the potential to dehydrate
and contribute to nausea. Water is perfectly acceptable for the purpose of
re-hydration. Sports drinks are designed to make you want to drink more.
Generally, children will drink more sports drink than they will water because it
has more taste and contains salt, which will make them feel thirstier. Because
sports drinks encourage you to drink more fluid, they are the beverage of choice
when trying to get a child or headstrong teenager to re-hydrate.
It is important to understand the symptoms of dehydration, heat exhaustion
and heat stroke. In the Ark-La-Tex, the relative humidity stays around 40
percent while the temperature can climb to around 100 degrees F. The combination
of these two factors makes the temperature seem like 110 degrees F. If you
increase the environmental temperature to 110 degrees F, then the temperature
feels like 137 degrees F and heatstroke becomes likely to occur.
The symptoms of heat exhaustion are dizziness; cold, clammy skin; nausea and
headaches. The symptoms of heat stroke are high body temperature and dry skin;
confusion; and unconsciousness. People suffering from heatstroke will feel
chilly and have tingling arms and goose bumps. If you feel these symptoms, get
out of the heat and seek immediate medical treatment. Begin cooling down with
ice baths or other means.
Please don’t ignore what your body is telling you. Plan for fluid intake
before you go outside. Too much exposure to the heat combined with dehydration
could be fatal for you or someone you love.
If you don’t think ahead, the heat will catch you by surprise, and could
prove fatal, but it doesn’t have to be.
If you would like more information on water in our diets or a list of foods
which contain water, contact me at the University of Arkansas Cooperative
Extension Service, Miller County 400 Laurel * Suite 215, Texarkana, call (870)
779-3609, or e-mail Chaley@uaex.edu.
Tried and True Tip: As our kids head out the door for ball practice, we
freeze water in water bottles to keep with them. As they thaw, they have
ice-cold water to drink.
We appreciate your feedback!
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