We’ve encountered our first 90-degree days on the trail. We’ve also encountered our first signs of heat exhaustion (on a sweaty trip deep into Linville Gorge this past weekend).
Heat exhaustion can lead to heat stroke which can damage the brain and other organs and can lead to death. Fortunately, if you recognize and treat heat exhaustion at the outset you can keep it from devolving into something much more serious.
Even if you’re a dedicated couch surfer, that springlike weather we had last week, when the temperature reached 80 in some spots, got you thinking, didn’t it? Maybe the outdoors isn’t such a bad place. Maybe I should plan to spend more time outside.
We’ve made the transfer from cool and budding to warm and lush. The weather is great for hiking — the associated annoyances we face along the way, specifically ticks and mosquitoes, and poison ivy.
Here’s a quick look at prevention and treatment for both.
Ticks and mosquitoes are being shown to cause a growing number of maladies, from Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever (ticks) to viruses including Zika and chikungunya. Ticks, according to current thought, need to be attached for 24 hours before they become a problem (though removal as soon as possible is best); mosquitoes can do their damage immediately.
Follow product instructions. Parents should apply this product to their children, avoiding hands, eyes, and mouth.
Follow this four-part removal process recommended by the CDC:
Your best bet in avoiding poison ivy is to know what this culprit looks like (see photo) and steer clear — way clear. In general, the vine has leaves that grow in threes; usually, but not always, one side of the leaf is smooth, the other has three serrations. Also, the vine itself is furry: if you see a fuzzy vine growing up the trunk of a tree, resist the urge to pet it. A good rule of thumb is to avoid “leaves of three,” which also covers the poison oak and poison sumac.
Even if you only think you’ve been exposed — keeping in mind that it may be hours before symptoms in the form of a rash and really itchy skin — clean the area thoroughly in question thoroughly. There are various recommendations on what to use, including:
If some poison ivy manages to penetrate your best defenses and you develop the really itchy rash, the more popular treatment options include calamine lotion, zinc carbonate, zinc oxide. Baking soda and colloidal oatmeal are also suggested itch remedies. Calamine lotion, though, is easy to apply (dab a little on a cotton ball and apply).
Click on the following links for more in-depth insight into ticks, mosquitoes, and poison ivy.
Wondering whether you really need to take precautions against tick and mosquito bites? Read this sobering piece — “Tick and Mosquito Infections Spreading Rapidly, C.D.C. Finds” — that appeared May 1, 2018, in The New York Times.
Learn more about tick bites from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
For details on dealing with mosquitoes, visit the Environmental Protection Agency here.
Insect Shield
On EPA insect repellant determination tool
Learn more about more natural poison ivy treatments here and
here
It’s a situation we face from time to time: the spirit is eager, the body … meh. What’s an active body to do?
We turned to our buddy Google for some advice on when it’s OK to exercise — and when it’s not — when you aren’t feeling one hundred percent. And here’s what we gleaned from WebMD.com, the Mayo Clinic and from avid walker, runner and Road Runner’s Club of America certified marathon coach Wendy Bumgardner.
With temperatures throughout the region expected to flirt with the 100 this week, it’s a good time to talk about your drinking problem.
As in, you don’t drink enough.
And in this heat especially, that’s a problem.
Here are some quick FAQs on staying hydrated:
=&0=& The Mayo Clinic says that for everyday survival, men need to consume about three liters (13 cups, three Nalgene bottles) a day, women 2.2 liters or nine cups. Bouts of exercise that make you sweat demands another 1.5 to 2.5 cups (roughly half a liter). Prolonged exercise — hiking, for instance — requires even more. How much, says the Mayo Clinic, depends on how much you sweat. On our hikes, of anywhere from 3 to 10 miles, we recommend you take two liters of water. (On longer hikes, we take a water filter.)
=&1=& Yes, says the Mayo Clinic, but usually only altitudes above 8,200 feet, which rules out anything in our region (Mount Mitchell, at 6,684 feet, is the highest point east of Souther Dakota’s Black Hills.) You’ll also want to drink a little more on an especially humid day.
=&2=& “The basic guideline for most people is that if you are doing continuous exercise for 60 minutes or less, then water is fine,” Suzanne Girard Eberle, sport dietician and author of “Endurance Sports Nutrition,” tells The Washington Post. “But beyond 60 minutes and if the intensity is high, you should consider a sports drink.” Sports drinks include electrolytes, which help regulate nerves and muscles; carbohydrates, which help restore glycogen, sodium and potassium levels, as well as water. On a long hike, it might make sense to have one bottle filled with water, and one with a sports drink. And don’t flinch when you see the sodium levels: replenishing depleted sodium (as well as potassium) is crucial to keep you going — and to keep you from cramping.
=&3=&No. Start the day before — even earlier — if you know you’re going on a long hike, especially on a hot day: your cells can absorb the liquid. And continue to drink and rehydrate after the hike.
=&4=& Are you not thirsty, or do you have no desire to drink tepid water? Our solution: If you use water bottles, fill them three-quarters full the night before your hike and stick them in the fridge. Then, just before heading out for your hike, top ’em off. You should have tasty cold water for a couple hours at least. If you use a hydration bladder, load the bladder with ice, then top off with water. If water sits in your tube long it will heat up; you may have to spit it out to get to the cold stuff. Also, according to Girard Eberle, cold water is more easily absorbed into the stomach
=&5=&If you’re drinking enough, you will have to pee. That’s good. If you have a thing about peeing in the woods, well, we have a support group — talk to us. And when you do pee, make sure it’s clearish. If it’s obviously yellow, you aren’t drinking enough.
So drink up! You got a problem with that?
