Dear Parents and Instructors,
1. I read with much sadness the recent spate of deaths attributed to the generic term “heat stroke”. This came in the form of sudden death while exercising or even drowning due to onset of cramps and kids with no prior experience in cramps would have difficulties staying afloat. This is often due to the simple lack of isotonic balance in the body system.
2. With the increased emphasis in sport, especially for the kids and teenagers, to build a healthier society, the number of these deaths would surely increase.
So please read on…..
3. If your kid was already exercising too much in the earlier part of the morning (whether Physical Education or even running around the field), it meant your kid would have already depleted (lost) much of his electrolyte (here I am referring to sodium, potassium and even magnesium) by the afternoon. If your kid were to enroll in extra curricular physical activities like swimming in the afternoon, the chances of them getting cramps is quite high especially given our tropical climate. In such an instance, if you kid had not experienced cramps before, the loss of electrolyte plus lack of food (some forgo due to lack of recess money) would create a potentially death engulfing situation.
4. So, parents and instructors, please check with your kids if they had a tiring and exhaustive session in the morning and if the answer is yes, do replenish them with proper isotonic drinks (100 plus, Gatorade, Pokari Sweat etc). Of course, for instructors, it would be better than merely asking the “anyone not feeling well today” indemnity question to safeguard one’s own career. Do care for your trainees!
Cheers!
Mikey
Addendum: I came across this article in the Straits Times (1 Mar 08) about raising of funds for kids who goes hungry – “Mall marathon man hopes to raise $50,000“.
I hope some funds for recess would also be set aside for isotonic drinks especially for those who have to train or play alot in this tropical paralyse (errh.. I mean paradise).
[...] e. By the way, I wonder why when athlete collapsed and had their heart stopped during marathons and likes, and whether if Defibrillator works in such instance given that the poor athlete, probably highly deficient in potassium, sodium and other essential electrolytes could really have their heart “jump start” again. It is just like trying to jump start a depleted battery. I am not sure if giving a quick injectio n with the proper electrolyte to the heart region might help (maybe someone could comment on this). - link [...]