According to the National Institutes of Health, the leading cause of sudden death in high school football players is exertional heat stroke.
Summer vacation may be ending for high school athletes, but because the spikes in temperature can last well into September, athletic trainers and coaches will need to remain vigilant when it comes to signs of possible heat exhaustion and heatstroke.
According to the National Institutes of Health, the leading cause of sudden death in high school football players is exertional heat stroke.
Mary Barron, an associate professor of exercise and nutrition sciences at the George Washington Milken Institute School of Public Health, told WTOP that coaches and trainers of outdoor sports need to keep an eye on the temperatures.
“Change when you’ll be working out,” she said.
Shifting to earlier in the morning or later evening practices, when possible, can keep athletes out of the hottest weather, she recommended.
Barron said high school athletes should be sure to drink plenty of water, and that if they’re thirsty, they’re already dehydrated.
When it comes to sports drinks, “Personally, I’m OK with Gatorade … but don’t make that your sole hydration,” she said. “You need water.”
When an athlete is suffering in the heat, they may be tempted to chug from a water bottle, but Barron said to take it easy.
“What I say to them is ‘sips, not gulps,’” she said. “If you sip it, it’s slower, it goes down slower. If you gulp it, you may see it in reverse.”
Barron said parents should not be hesitant to speak up if they have concerns about the intensity of practices in hot weather for younger athletes, especially middle school and pee-wee football age groups.
“That’s where it’s parent-run and parents need to consider” if practices should be held, she said.
“‘Should we or should we not have practice?’ If you’re asking that question, you should not have practice,” she added.
When the temperatures soar, but a workout is still possible, Barron, who helps out for a local high school football team, suggested placing towels in an ice-filled cooler. When a player is feeling the heat, she said, the chilled towels can be very effective.
“You put it around their neck, you can do that with their shoulder pads on, and it cools them so fast. I did that with my football players this past Friday,” she said.
In extreme cases, where a heatstroke is suspected and the core body temperature hits 104 degrees, you should call 911 and the athlete should be dunked into a cold water bath. Trainers can also use the “TACO” method to cool the patient.
“We put the athlete on the tarp, get coaches all around the tarp, and we dump ice-cold water on them and we kind of slosh the water,” Barron explained. “Because we’re just trying to get that temperature down as soon as possible.”
Barron said educating students about nutrition as well as the finer points of their sport can help them make better choices when selecting ways to quench their thirst. In one case, she said a student athlete asked her about the energy drink he had and whether it was a good choice. They looked up the caffeine content in it and found it was equivalent to four cans of caffeinated cola.
“And then you know what he did? He said, ‘You know, I don’t think I should do this now,’” she said.
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