HOUSTON – (Aug. 9, 2010)
– Sports practice and workouts are tough on school athletes and
coaches during the brutal heat of August and September. A rise in
body heat of just 2 to 3 percent is likely to weaken a player’s
performance, and not much more is needed to endanger health.
Heat-related illnesses—often called heat exhaustion or heat
stroke—are dangerous and can even be deadly.
In professional leagues, highly trained certified athletic trainers
and sports dietitians constantly monitor their players’ performance
and health. High school and junior high coaches are trained, as
well, to watch for signs of trouble. But elementary school and
volunteer coaches—parents, too—may be less aware of warning signs.
Children are at much higher risk for heat illness than adults and
can easily get sick going back to sports practices this fall.
Doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital believe it is important for
children to be acclimated to the heat before practices begin to best
prepare their bodies to fight against heat illness. Children’s
bodies produce more heat, but they sweat less. That puts them at
special risk for heat-related injuries. The challenge however is not
only confined to the extreme workouts of older teens. Young kids
feel the heat, too, and their bodies are less adept at regulating
internal temperatures.
“We need to do a better job of educating parents, coaches and
especially players, themselves, about dealing with summer heat,”
said Roberta Anding, Director of Sports Nutrition and dietitian with
the Adolescent Medicine clinic of Texas Children’s Hospital,
instructor with Baylor College of Medicine and the sports dietitian
for the Houston Texans football team. “Dehydration is cumulative.
You can go out on the field on day one, then go home and drink. But
if you don’t take in enough fluid to truly rehydrate, day two will
feel worse.”
An athlete’s intake of fluids should never be restricted. Coaches of
long ago tried to “toughen” players by withholding breaks and water.
Many coaches are still unaware of potential dangers of wearing
helmets. The very same gear that keeps players safer on the field
can increase risks on the sidelines. “Helmets protect the head, but
they also prevent sweat from evaporating,” Anding said. Because
helmets hold in body heat, coaches need to urge players to remove
helmets between plays.
The Sports Medicine and Adolescent Medicine doctors at Texas
Children’s Hospitals share the following tips to monitor heat
illness:
- Monitoring weight is critical. Most experts agree that about 80
percent of weight lost in a workout should be replaced by fluid
intake. Parents can help by weighing their child every day of
pre-season practice or other hard workouts. If his or her weight is
down each day, the child is almost certainly dehydrated. How much
weight is too much to lose during workouts? More than 2 percent,
which is two pounds per 100 pounds of weight.
- Urine color is important, too. Young kids might giggle at the
lesson, but coaches should teach athletes to check their urine
during practice breaks. To help explain to a young class, doctors
suggest coaches use two simple visual aids—glasses of apple juice
and pale lemonade. As long as urine looks about the color of the
lemonade, the urine test is fine. Closer to apple juice? Time to
take in more fluid.
- What should active children drink? Water is almost always best,
but after working outside for an hour or more, a sports drink is a
good idea because it will replace electrolytes lost in sweat and add
carbohydrates to fuel exercising muscles. “The purpose of a sports
drink is to replace what a body has lost. Other than that, plain
water is just fine,” Anding explains.
- How much to drink?
Unfortunately, the thirst response is not a
good measure. Humans don’t rehydrate if they stop drinking fluids as
soon as they’re no longer thirsty. The body needs more.
Experts debate exact proportions, but here are general guidelines
when it comes to fluid intake:
- Age 10 and under—Drink about four ounces an hour or two before an
activity, four more ounces just before an activity, and another four
ounces after every quarter hour of activity.
- From age 10 to about 13—Follow the young children’s schedule, but
increase the intake for each step to about eight ounces.
- Adolescents and older—Follow guidelines for adults, which call for
drinking about 16 ounces of fluid an hour or two before an activity,
eight to 16 ounces about 15 minutes before an activity, and enough
fluid during an activity to replace what’s lost.
Parents also can prepare for a healthy school year by ensuring their
child has healthy sleeping habits, eats a nutritious breakfast and
lunch, and has a backpack that, when filled, weighs no more than 5
percent to 10 percent of the child’s body weight.
Get more back to school tips.
About Texas Children's Hospital
Texas Children's Hospital is committed to a community of healthy
children by providing the finest pediatric patient care, education
and research. Renowned worldwide for its expertise and breakthrough
developments in clinical care and research, Texas Children’s is
ranked in the top 10 best children’s hospitals by U.S. News and
World Report. Texas Children’s also operates the nation’s largest
primary pediatric care network, with over 40 offices throughout the
greater Houston community. Texas Children’s has embarked on a $1.5
billion expansion, Vision 2010, which includes a neurological
research institute, a comprehensive obstetrics facility focusing on
high risk births, and a community hospital in suburban West Houston.
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