"Ken" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:
[email protected]...
>>The whole point of the article is an imbalance between salt and water
>>intake. Endurance athletes who run greater distances than marathons
>>take
>>salt to allow them to take on more fluids.
>>
>>
> No it isn't. In fact the young lady had been drinking large
> quantities of gatorade which contains sodium and potassium.
In hot conditions Gatorade falls far short in the salt department.
> In the case of Michele Burr, who suffered a severe (but not lethal)
> case of hyponatremia during the Vermont 100, she says that she had
> been consuming electrolyte fluids, succeed tablets, as well as potato
> chips, peanut butter, jelly sandwiches, fig newtons and potatoes.
Yes, she had consumed all this but she was NOT taking in enough salt for
her for that day.
"" They said that my low sodium diet, combined with a high volume of
running (sometimes as much as 100 miles/week) and sweating in the heat
and humidity here in the Washington DC area were the problem combined
with the low volume of electrolyte fluids (relative to the amount of
water I was taking in)."
Translation - not enough salt for the water she was consuming
""Upon being admitted at the first hospital in Vermont my sodium level
was 113mEq/L but then quickly went to 116 and the next reading was at
126. The hospital felt uncomfortable and kept telling my husband it was
possible I'd get "PONDS" - which is central pontine myelinolysis
(permanent brain damage). They also told him to think about long term
care for me and that "things could turn out a number of ways". They also
asked him if I remained in a vegetative state, would I want my organs
donated and did I have a living will prepared. At this point, an
ambulance took me to New Hampshire to Dartmouth-Hitchcock. Needless to
say, I think I aged my husband about ten years during these five days.""
Note her sodium level - severely low. To repeat too much water and not
enough salt.
>
> It appears that the causes of hyponatremia are complex.
>
> Your assertion that endurance athletes take salt is simply that. Some
> do, some don't.
And how many have you done? There are some that can get by with just
the salt in a sport drink but that number can be counted on a few
fingers. A 50k in cool weather one can probably get their extra salt
from chips or the proverbial salt dish and spuds. Once the temp goes up
and the distance grows the vast majority have some brand of salt cap on
them.
> Personally, I have never taken salt though I do seem to go to pieces
> in hot weather so maybe I should start. But what I find intriguing is
> that on a freezing cold day when the only fluid loss is mucous
> dripping from my nose, race organisers admonishing me to "drink early,
> drink often"
You are sweating more than you think and one can suffer from simple
dehydration if you're not careful to drink.
>
> One web site I visited recently advised that by the time we know we
> are thirsty it is too late. In other words they imply the thirst
> mechanism is ineffective. I haven't been show the evidence to support
> this.
This is not a simple issue and has many variables and why there is
conflicting data. I'll over generalize and say in cool(I know cool is
vague) races many can people rely on thirst to drive their fluid intake.
Again, once the temp goes up this gets to be a tricky problem. Let's
assume you running Western States and you happen to cruising at some
elevation with temps in there 40's with some snow and taking in your
fluid by thirst. Then the trail descends into the canyon's and the temp
jumps in a few minutes to 100. If you're relying on your thirst to keep
you hydrated you end up in deep **** because the fluids pass through
like **** out window and bam you in trouble.
It's ideal to stay well hydrated to cover these cases. When I say well
hydrated I mean - in sodium balance.
> Meanwhile runners consume vast quantities of fluid in pursuit of the
> holy grail of colourless, odourless urine, and find themselves water
> poisoned before the race has even started.
If you mean they drink to much water before the race starts and let
their sodium ratio drop severely, you are correct. Even if it's a sport
drink you end up in trouble because sports drink are low on salt. If you
don't have a salt cap try a V8.
-DougF