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Hyponatremia should never happen to you.

For the last 40 years, sports medicine experts have told athletes in endurance events that they should take fluids frequently during events lasting more than one hour. However, three years ago, a 28-year-old woman collapsed and died after finishing the Boston Marathon. Her blood salt levels were extremely low and she died from a condition called hyponatremia. This summer, a policeman training for bicycle duty died of the same condition. In July 2005, sports medicine experts issued a warning to all athletes from the First International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference (Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, July/August 2005.)

I have never seen this syndrome in well-conditioned athletes. It has been reported almost exclusively in less-fit, slower and novice athletes, and is far more common in women. Hyponatremia is caused by drinking too much fluid and is not caused by excessive loss of salt in sweat or by exercising. When people with psychiatric problems force themselves to drink huge amounts of water while sitting still, they also can die of hyponatremia, only in this case, it is called water intoxication.

The excess fluid expands blood volume and dilutes blood salt levels. This causes blood salt levels to be very low, while brain salt levels remain normal. Fluid moves from an area of low salt concentration into areas with high salt levels. So fluid moves from the bloodstream into the brain, causing brain swelling. Since the brain is enclosed in the skull, which is a tight box, the brain expands and has nowhere to go, so it is squashed to cause headache, nausea, and blurred vision. Since these are the same symptoms caused by pure dehydration with normal blood salt levels, the only way to diagnose the condition is with blood tests.

As blood salt levels drop even lower, the person becomes confused, develops seizures and falls unconscious. You should suspect hyponatremia when the event takes more than four hours, the athlete is in her first ultra-long endurance event, and she has been drinking a lot as she exercises. All people who are confused, pass out or have seizures should be sent to a hospital immediately. The condition requires skilled management because the first impulse of an inexperienced physician is to give intravenous fluids, which dilute blood salt levels further and swell the brain and can kill the patient.

How much fluid should you drink? You will not become thirsty during exercise until you have lost between two and four pints of fluid, so you can’t wait for thirst to encourage you to drink. Dehydration makes you tired and it is unlikely that you can replace the lost fluid during a race after you have become thirsty. Blood has a much higher concentration of salt than sweat, so when you sweat, you lose far more water than salt. This causes blood salt levels to rise. Thirst is controlled by certain cells in your brain called osmoreceptors which are stimulated to make you thirsty only after blood salt levels have risen considerably. So you will not become thirsty until you are significantly dehydrated.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends a limit of 1200cc (5 cups, 2.5 pints, a little over 1 quart, or 2 average size water bottles) per hour, but for a person who is not exercising near his or her maximum, this could be too much. A person exercising near his capacity and not slowed down by fatigue probably does not have to worry about limiting fluid intake. He is working so hard at maintaining intensity, he doesn’t have enough time to drink too much. On the other hand, people slowed down by fatigue or those out of shape, should limit fluid intake, probably to less than two water bottles per hour. If you are exercising for more than an hour, you should also replace salt, either with salted sports drinks or salted foods.

How much water do you need when you’re not exercising?

Dr. Gabe Mirkin has been a radio talk show host for 25 years and practicing physician for more than 40 years; he is board certified in four specialties. For more information and hundreds of fitness and health reports, visit http://www.DrMirkin.com

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At the moment loads of people prefer buying their swimwear on the Internet; purchasing online is a very straightforward & appropriate way to shop in the warmth of your own dinning room. Find eye-catching and sexy tie side knickers, polka petrus bow thongs, cherry bomb boyshorts and silk satin plunge bras from Mimi Holliday.

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Swimwear is a predictable part of the summertime; yet a vast majority of full-figured females feel fearful at the prospect of shopping for swimsuits and bikinis that fit properly. These women even contemplate about wearing caftans by the swimming pool or at the beach rather than looking unappealing. Designers & shopkeepers are familiar with the fashion issues of the overweight woman, & are finally featuring a wide mixture of stylish bathing suit designs in XXL sizes, and one of the best places to uncover such swimwear is to get swimwear on the Web.

So, you want to host a great party, but you have limited funds. Can it be done? The answer is ABSOLUTELY!!!

There are numerous ways that you can cut costs when planning a shower. Perhaps the easiest way is to split the hostess duties among several friends. Homemade
food, favors, and invitations are another way to make things less expensive. The time of day you have the shower may also influence the cost. A mid-afternoon party with cake, punch, and light snacks is much less expensive than a dinner or a spa afternoon. Having the party at a restaurant may be less expensive if the guests all know each other and are willing to pay for their own meals. This may be somewhat awkward, though, so it definitely is a plan that will only fit certain situations.

Handmade invitations are a very easy way to cut corners. With a computer, a printer, and cardstock or specialty paper, you can make invitations that will look practically professional. Or you can choose to make a crafty invitation that perfectly complements your theme. Another option for invitations is to email invitations. Sites like sendomatic allow you to send invitations and maps, track responses, and even send weather reports for the big day for less than $15 dollars for 100 invitations. Sending email invitations saves on the purchase of invitations, as well as the postage.

Food for a shower can be very simple. If you have an early afternoon party that falls after lunch but before dinner, you can serve cake, punch, mints, nuts, and perhaps a fruit tray very inexpensively. The presentation is often more important than the actual food that is served. Use nice bowls and silver for a formal atmosphere. If you do not have crystal or silver, you can usually get plastic that looks like crystal and silver and will still look nice. Finger sandwiches also add an elegant touch and are inexpensive and easy to prepare. If you want a more casual feel to the shower, a vegetable platter and chips and dips are always welcome. Or get everyone in on the act and ask each person attending to bring a snack. You might want to have a sign up sheet, though, so that you don’t end up with 5 bags of chips.

Believe it or not, even if you don’t consider yourself a baker, there are several alternatives to expensive bakery cakes. Cupcakes are very easy, and sugar or plastic decorations in baby themes are fairly easy to find. You can also use frosting to “glue” small plastic baby decorations to the tops of Little Debbie snack cakes. These are precious, and they look like you spent a lot of time. Another option is to skip the traditional decorated cake, altogether, and go for individual cheesecakes (easy to make in muffin tins) or a delicious chocolate cake (make sure that the mom-to-be isn’t avoiding chocolate first). Cookies can make a great sweet treat also, and there are some really cute cookie cutters readily available. Finally, if you think you can make and frost a rectangular cake but are concerned about trying to do fancy decorations, you can find edible cake art images online. These are easy to apply to the top of the cake, and they are the same images used by bakeries.

Many of the games and activities for a baby shower are free. There are printouts available online if you want to play games like bingo. While party favors are a nice touch for a shower, they certainly are not necessary. A personal thank you, in person or written, is all that is necessary to thank the guests for attending.

Throwing a baby shower is a wonderfully generous thing to do. It does not, however, have to break the bank. Remember, the most important thing when hosting a shower is to create wonderful memories for your friend. Years from now she will remember the laughter and the thoughtfulness of her friends more than she will remember fancy favors or expensive cakes.

About the Author

Jill Manty is a stay at home and co-owner of www.delightfulchild.com, an online business dedicated to providing information about baby showers, breastfeeding, and natural parenting.

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