Adapting to the heat

[Trebor English]

I just don't like some of the ingredients in Gatorade.

Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida way back in the 1960s.  It was intended to replenish electrolytes lost in sweat by football players.  It was also supposed to replace carbohydrates.  

There are probably ingredients in sweat you don't want to drink.  Compared to college football players practicing most of us are rather sedentary.  The original recipe is probably not the right mix for what I lose in sweat.

 

[tripper]

I just don't like some of the ingredients in Gatorade.


Add bananas or raisins for potassium and your good to go.

The local Sprouts grocery store here sells sodium/potassium pills.  Basically the good electrolytes without the sugar water.  I keep them with me for all activities in the heat and they really help a lot. Just type in electrolyte tablets on Amazon. Big plus is they are so portable you can keep a few emergency ones on your person.

 

[QinReno]

Salty snacks, that’s why I keep potato chips on hand.

Spiff says a bag of potato chips and a banana and you're good to go, in preference to watered-down gatorade. I have to admit, that would be my choice too. And then a couple of beers to wash down the chips and get some fluids. I like that. 

 

[QinReno]

Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida way back in the 1960s.  It was intended to replenish electrolytes lost in sweat by football players.  It was also supposed to replace carbohydrates.  

There are probably ingredients in sweat you don't want to drink.  Compared to college football players practicing most of us are rather sedentary.  The original recipe is probably not the right mix for what I lose in sweat.

Somehow, I don't think the analogy of drinking sweat is very applicable. Ugh. Sugar in Gatorade is probably meant to replace some of the glucose and glycogen burned by the muscles of the football players, although I don't know how efficient that method might be. Or maybe the sugar is just to make it taste more like a regular drink.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida way back in the 1960s.  It was intended to replenish electrolytes lost in sweat by football players.

The three major reasons I dislike Gatorade are:

1. Lots of sugar, 21 grams per 12 oz of mostly high fructose corn syrup.  So I get a blood sugar spike followed by a energy crash.
2. Bromated vegetable oil used to increase fluidity and uniformity.  BVO is also used to create lead dissolving additives for gasoline and agricultural fumigants.  Many countries have outlawed its use in food.
3. Food dyes that add nothing but visual differentiation.  Red No.40, Blue No.1, and Yellow No.5 are derived from petroleum.  They have been linked to a number of health problems.

My preference is to get my electrolytes from natural foods, when away from my larder GORP is good for sodium and potassium, if made with salted nuts and raisins.  And wash it down with lots of water.  Also, watermelon is one of my best rehydrators; it also has a little sodium and potassium, but not enough so you still need to supplement.

P.S. Alcohol is a diuretic; it actually takes water to process in your liver.

 

[QinReno]

Unfortunately Spiff, you've identified a fact of life in america today. Namely, that pretty much everything you can buy in a grocery store in a bag, can, or box is bad for your health, in one way or another. Chips, being deep fried very likely in some saturated fat, are probably the worst "food" of everything else. Red, yellow, and blue dyes are in everything. High fructose corn syrup is found everywhere as a sweetener, especially in all soft drinks. And then what doesn't come in a can or box, aren't so great either ... pesticides on produce, hormones and antibiotics in meat.... It's a wonder any of us are still alive.

On checking, I see they use dextrose in Gatorade, which is apparently identical to plain glucose in the body, and have not used BVO in 5-years. Other powerade products use corn syrup instead.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gatorade#Composition_and_health_concerns
https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/news/20130129/brominated-vegetable-oil-qa

For now, I think I'll stick with 50:50 watered down Gatorade to replace electrolytes, and avoid the chips. OTOH, I'm not gonna give up Guinness for anything. Hopefully, it'll be the last taste in my mouth when I die.  :angel:

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

That is why I try to stick with natural, minimally processed foods as much as possible.  We all have dietary quirks that are not sticking with whatever we think is healthy.

My problem with sweeteners (sucrose, dextrose, corn syrup, et.al) is that over time they make your bodies cells resistant to insulin, meaning your pancreas has to secrete more insulin to keep you going and it is easier to store fat and harder to loose fat.  I read somewhere a long time ago that watered down orange juice give about the same elecrolytes as most sports drinks.

Never developed a taste for Guiness, my preference is for Moose Drool (a dark ale).  I just don't drink it to hydrate.

 

[QinReno]

My problem with sweeteners (sucrose, dextrose, corn syrup, et.al) is that over time they make your bodies cells resistant to insulin, meaning your pancreas has to secrete more insulin to keep you going and it is easier to store fat and harder to loose fat.

Spiff, you are much more of a purist than most of us, I think. I believe the bottom line is, people don't get fat on "fats", they get fat on too many carbohydrates, of which the excess get turned into fat cells in the body, and to a large extent that is the cause of the epidemic in diabetes. High-fructose corn syrup is in everything anymore. Plus massive amount of salt, which leads to high blood-pressure. Modern diet killed the caveman.
https://healthyeating.sfgate.com/happens-unburned-carbohydrates-2461.html

I don't like overly sweet drinks either, which is why I always dilute them 50:50 with water, on a standard basis: gatorade, and also juices. Moose Drool sounds horrible, but I did drink green Moosehead for quite a few years, but Guinness is something else. When I was up in Bend last month, they had a dark ale called Nitro, and I liked it quite bit too.

 

[Moxadox]

In case of dehydration, the World Health Organization rehydration solution is a good thing to know about. The quickie recipe is:

6 level teaspoons of sugar
1/2 level teaspoon of salt
1 liter clean water

Stir until the ingredients are dissolved. For prevention of dehydration, you can dilute this several times. As another poster mentioned, you should use the color of your urine as a gauge of your hydration. The best treatment for heat illness is prevention. If you can't bug out or the heat follows you into the mountains, at least make sure you have sugar, salt, and water to keep your cells happy.

The reason for the sugar is that it helps the cells of your intestine to absorb the water. The salt helps keep the water on the inside of your cells where it belongs.

The Dire Wolfess

 

[QinReno]

The reason for the sugar is that it helps the cells of your intestine to absorb the water.  The salt helps keep the water on the inside of your cells where it belongs. 

Good to have a doctor around to keep it straight, +1.

I found several links that look useful in this regard.
https://www.sciencealert.com/just-a...d-as-or-better-than-energy-drinks-study-finds
https://www.precisionhydration.com/...-the-new-precision-hydration-electrolye-range
https://everydayroots.com/homemade-energy-drink

A bit more technical.
http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/en/d/Js4950e/2.4.html

 

[John61CT]

All colored flavored sugar waters are just that, the "electrolytes" scam giving the halo of intense athletes just pure propaganda.

Paying lots of money to poison yourself.

Yes I do it too, but at least know it's bad for me.

Epidemiologically sugar is worse than tobacco, much worse than all the other chemicals and factory processing in our food chain.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Unfortunately Spiff, you've identified a fact of life in america today. Namely, that pretty much everything you can buy in a grocery store in a bag, can, or box is bad for your health, in one way or another . . .  pesticides on produce, hormones and antibiotics in meat.... It's a wonder any of us are still alive.

 

[QinReno]

Ah, john, I thought it was pretty clear when moxadox mentioned the WHO rehydration formula. They're in the business of saving lives in 3rd world countries where people die daily from malnutrition. -1.

 

[QinReno]

Spiff, paradoxical, isn't it. Must be other factors.

 

[John61CT]

The species would be much better off if predators still threatened us daily.

 

[losthighwaydrifter]

I spent a couple of years in east Africa mostly Somalia covered in gear. 110-120 daily drinking piss warm water. you never get used to it you just live with it and solider on. stay in the shade if you can and drink 1 liter of water every 2-3 hrs depending on activity level. and a wet sock around a bottle of water will make it fell cold at least cooler than other wise.

 

[Moxadox]

.... wet sock around a bottle of water will make it fell cold at least cooler than other wise.
[/quote]

That is a great swamp cooler for your water!

Speaking of which, if you're in a dry country, make use of the evaporative cooling phenomenon by wetting bandanas to wear on your head and around your neck. As they dry they will cool your body heat. You don't have to go out and buy those fancy gel cooling bands. Just use a bandana, or even a wet t-shirt on your head. F*ck fashion--we're talking survival.

The Dire Wolfess

 

[highdesertranger]

yeah, but a soaked bandanna last 20 maybe 30 minutes. and those cooling ones last about 4 hours. highdesertranger

 

[waldenbound]

Bandanas soaked in water, yes.
One of the functions of blood is to regulate the body’s temperature. When you soak a bandana and tie it around your neck, the carotid artery carries the cooled blood to the core. Feels like you stepped into a refrigerator.
I’ve heard people say a damp cloth on th back of the neck, but the carotid artery is in the front of the neck. And soak that bandana, till it’s wringing wet!

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

yeah,  but a soaked bandanna last 20 maybe 30 minutes.  and those cooling ones last about 4 hours.  highdesertranger

If one has enough water and can replenish the bandana every 20 minutes it will provide more cooling.  If you are in a situation where water is precious (e.g. hiking in the Grand Canyon) the cooling wraps will give cooling over an extended period of time.

Faster evaporation = more cooling for a short period of time.  
Slower evaporation = less cooling for a long time.

 . . . I’ve heard people say a damp cloth on the back of the neck, but the carotid artery is in the front of the neck . . .

An evaporative cooling wrap over the cardioid arteries will cool the blood going to the brain, over the back of the neck directly cools the brainstem and the cerebrospinal fluid.  Both work.

I have found that keeping my hair wet will keep me cool, using a perforated cover that fits on a bicycle water bottle.