Heat Illnesses

As summer swelters on, those on the front line of athletic care should be especially vigilant of hyponatremia when treating sick patients or advising healthy individuals. Recommend having a variety of fluids freely available and advise people - especially exercising athletes - to drink when thirsty and reduce activity, splash with water, and seek a shaded spot when hot. Before we promote blanket advice to "drink lots of fluid" and "stay well-hydrated", we should be mindful that fluid is a balance - especially during exercise.

The loss of electrolytes such as sodium and potassium through sweat can lead to muscle cramps, nausea, vomiting and even death.  Electrolytes are minerals (sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and chloride) which send messages to nerves and muscles throughout the body,  and are involved with muscle contraction and relaxation during exercise, so that an imbalance can impact the actual contraction of the muscle itself.

In 2009, the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) issued a set of high school-specific pre-season heat- acclimatization guidelines as part of its ongoing effort to reduce the number of heat-related athletic injuries in secondary schools. The guidelines have been adopted in seventeen states and are being considered by many others.

Between 1997 and 2001, eighteen student athletes died from heat stroke.In less than a two-week period this summer, football players in Indiana, Florida and Minnesota succumbed to the heat. It is imperative that, as parents, we recognize the signs of heat-related illness and take steps to prevent any more tragedies.

Athletes who exercise in hot or humid weather are prone to three different types of heat illnesses: heat cramps, heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

While a young athlete's need to stay hydrated is a constant regardless of the sports season, athletes exercising in cool or cold weather need to be taught to drink more fluids throughout the day because the cold weather alters the thirst sensation so athletes don't feel as thirsty and as a result don't drink as much, which can cause dehydration.