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First Aid: Dealing With Heat Cramps
Author : Chris Le Roy
Submitted : 2011-07-29 00:23:16 Word Count : 987 Popularity: 3
Tags: first aid, first aid course, first aid courses, first aid training
As Australia's summers seem to get hotter every year, heat cramps are becoming a cause for concern in more and more people. If you spend time outdoors, especially exercising or working, you need to be educated on what heat cramps are, how to prevent them and first aid treatment if you or someone around you happens to suffer from them.
What are Heat Cramps?
Despite what you may think, even the most in shape athlete is susceptible to heat cramps. These have no link to your level of physical fitness.. Basically, when complex salts are reduced in the muscles, spasms result which causes cramps.
An imbalance can occur rather easily in the body because excessive sweating in high temperatures depletes the valuable water that your muscles and organs need to function properly. When your body begins to become dehydrated, your brain ensures that water in your body is used where it is most needed which is by your main organs, especially your kidneys. This means that your muscles quickly become dehydrated, resulting in heat cramps.
It is vitally important that if you are in a hot environment that you stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. Eating a few saltine crackers, pretzels or peanuts will help you to retain a bit of that water as well before you have the chance to sweat it all away.
Signs
The signs of heat cramps are fairly straight forward:
- The individual will generally have pale and clammy skin.
- They will experience cramps in the area where the muscle spasms are occurring.
- Many individuals also complain of nausea.
First Aid Relief for Heat Cramps
While heat cramps can be rather uncomfortable, they are rarely considered a threat. However, dehydration is dangerous which is why heat cramps must never be dismissed. They are one of the first signs that your body gives you that it needs water or your condition can be more severe.
1. The first thing you want to do is get the affected individual to a cool, shaded environment when possible.
2. Very slowly and gently, stretch out the affected muscle.
3. Make sure that the individual sips on water to hydrate. This will also help with the nausea.
4. Apply a cold compress to the affected area to cool the circulating blood.
5. Calm the person and encourage them to rest. A little reassurance can go a long way in a stressful situation.
If the condition worsens or if you or the individual suffering from the heat cramps feels as though this is an emergency situation, call for a paramedic or ambulance right away. Dial 000 in Australia or 911 in the USA. In this case, you will want to be able to tell the paramedic the status of their vitals upon arrival as well.
Author's Resource Box
If you are looking for a great First Aid Course then visit our website as we offer courses throughout Queensland. We also have a great range of first aid kit as well to use in your workplace.
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