[pct-l] dangers of "cameling up"

[Jim Bravo]

Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2013 16:25:16 -0700
From: Jeffrey Olson <jolson at olc.edu>

I like the advice to monitor the color of your pee.  Too yellow -
dehydrated, too clear - too hydrated.If you don't pee, well, drink some
and see what its color is!!



I'd like to add a big caveat here regarding the color of urine! You can be
peeing clear urine and be DEHYDRATED. It has happened to me (and others)
during ultra-marathons and long training runs in the heat. Why? Because you
haven't consumed enough salt. The body will always try to keep the correct
percentage of sodium in the bloodstream to protect itself. As you lose some
sodium in sweat (the less heat-trained you are, the more you lose), the
body can and will dump water from the bloodstream to keep the percentage
within acceptable limits!! Clear urine. Seeing this can cause you to drink
even less water, although drinking more water without salt intake is not
the answer. Cooling down and taking salt is. It took me years to figure out
why I was getting dehydrated and sick with CLEAR URINE. I sweat a hell of a
lot, so I needed more salt than most people. I now carry a few Succeed
tablets just in case.

This is a complex issue and the medical experts for hot events like the
Western States Endurance Run are writing some good stuff on it. As a hiker,
the risk is less than a runner, but still you should eat plenty of salty
food or take electrolytes whenever it's hot and you're hiking. Carry some
salt tabs or some small packets from a fast food place in case you feel ill
and suspect low sodium count.

There's a short blurb on low sodium intake at this link, not the cool
article they used to have there, but still useful:

http://www.wser.org/medical-and-other-risks/

Have a great hiking season,
Jim