Dehydration poses severe health risks to professional athletes

Properly replacing water loss experienced during the intense minutes of a professional sports competition is a delicate and vital balance for athletes who battle dehydration on the ice, field or court.

“If you are thirsty you are probably already behind the curve and when you’re an elite athlete at these levels you have to be watching your hydration all day every day,” said Dr. Elizabeth Matzkin, chief of women’s sports medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Matzkin said if players are dehydrated, they will experience loss of endurance, cramping, dizziness, headache, fatigue, and eventually, heat exhaustion.

“Most athletes are going to be slightly dehydrated to some extent at the end of a hard battle, a hard game, and as long as it’s not to a degree that impacts performance it’s OK,” said Matzkin.

Matzkin said a mix of sports drinks and water is the best approach for replacing lost body fluids. She said dividing your body weight by two is a good equation to find out how many ounces of water one needs to drink in a day.

“It becomes a balance, and again, there is not a one-size-fits-all kind of approach, how much you sweat and how much salt you lose and how much electrolytes you lose is different for each athlete,” said Matzkin.

Charmaine Jones, a registered dietitian and founder of Food Jonezi said properly fueling the body also plays a major role in sports performance. “You need some energy to get your body started and you should always eat at least 30-60 minutes before your exercise.”

Jones, who was recently interviewed on Herald Radio, said athletes like runners can experience a plunge of fatigue in which they feel dehydrated and hungry.

“You always want to keep a small sports drink hooked up to your runner’s belt for hydration to replenish those electrolytes you lose while sweating,” said Jones.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, indicators of dehydration include clammy skin, dry lips, sunken eyes and yellow urine. Alcohol, soda and caffeinated drinks can dehydrate the body and athletes are cautioned to avoid them.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2NR0R4Y