Heat Exhaustion

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/ 

Here's your outdoor tip on heat exhaustion.

Heat exhaustion can occur when you have been exposed to high temperatures for an extended period of time particularly when it is combined with high humidity and strenuous activity.  There are two different types:

1.      Water depletion with signs of excessive thirst, weakness, headache, and unconsciousness

2.      Salt depletion with nausea, vomiting, muscle cramps, and dizziness

Of most concern is that it can lead to heat stroke which can damage the brain and progress to death damaging vital organs.  Stroke will be indicated by the body temperature rising above 104 degrees F and coma or seizure occurs.

 

Symptoms of heat exhaustion include:

·        Muscle cramps

·        Pale skin

·        Confusion

·        Fainting

·        Fatigue

·        Nausea

·        Dizziness

·        Extreme sweating

·        Rapid heartbeat

·        Cool moist skin with goose bumps

·        Low blood pressure when standing

Heat exhaustion happens when your body fails to cool itself and your core temperature of 98.6 degrees F is not maintained.  Early stages can be treated by drinking cool liquids, getting into cooler temperature, and resting.  Apply cool water to your skin and loosen clothing. Don’t drink alcohol as it interferes with your body’s ability to regulate your temperature and heavy clothing impedes sweat evaporation contributing to heat exhaustion.

Risk factors for heat exhaustion include

·        Being dehydrated

·        Age: Children under 5 and the elderly

·        Illness

·        Disabilities

·        Obesity

·        Pregnancy

·        Heard disease

·        High blood pressure

·        Respiratory disease

·        Drinking alcohol

·        Physical exertion

·        Taking certain medications

There are a number of precautions you can take to prevent heat exhaustion:

1.      Let your body adjust to the heat.  Slowly expose your body to high heat over a period of days before you attempt vigorous activity.

2.      Avoid sunburn as it reduces your body’s ability to shed the heat.  Wear a wide-brimmed hat or use an umbrella to shade yourself from the sun.

3.      Wear loose-fitting, lightweight clothing to allow sweat to evaporate.

4.      Light colored clothing reflects the heat.

5.      Take periodic breaks in air-conditioning or the shade.  Fans by themselves are not adequate.

6.      Drink lots of fluids

7.      Do not drink alcohol.

8.      Be aware of extra precautions you need to take with any medications.

9.      Watch out for hot cars and areas with hot pavement

10.  Try to avoid strenuous activity.

Remember that heat exhaustion is preventable if you use good judgment and be careful doing strenuous work in the heat.  You can stop heat exhaustion from developing into a more serious heat stroke.  If you are subject to one or more of the risk factors, it is best to stay out of the heat and enjoy the outdoors resting in the shade.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

 

References-Additional Reading

Heat Exhaustion
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/heat-exhaustion

Heat Exhaustion
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heat-exhaustion/basics/definition/con-20033366

 

Heat Exhaustion
http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/condition/heat-exhaustion

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Water in the Outdoors|Nature|Wildlife

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/ 

Here's your outdoor tip on finding drinking water in the outdoors.

“Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink”--. Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

This quotation from Samuel Taylor Coleridge does not just apply to traveling on the ocean, but also most places we travel in the outdoors.  Over 70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, but only about 1% is safe to drink.  If you do not have the drinking water with you, is the water you find in the outdoors safe to drink?

Many experts say don’t ever drink the surface water you find in the outdoors without treatment.  There are others that say if you are in a true wilderness situation, the water is much cleaner that some perceive.  Humans, pets, and wildlife all have the potential to contaminate outdoor water sources so many still argue that the risk of drinking water without treatment is not worth the risk.

The question then is how should you handle the water you collect to drink in the outdoors?

1.     Always carry some treatment method to disinfect any suspect water.

2.     Be observant for human or animal activity.  Remote areas may have drinkable water.

3.     Maintain good personal hygiene—watch particularly dirty hands and fingernails.

4.     Bathe, cook, urinate and defecate at least 200 feet away from water source.  Even soapy water can spawn algae, which can later establish a population of microscopic pathogens in the water.

5.     Be aware microorganisms may be in water

a.     Protozoa are single cell parasites that are capable of causing infection.  They can survive for months in cold water and have a shell resistant to iodine and chlorine.  They can cause diarrhea, vomiting, gas and intestinal discomfort lasting for a week or more.  The most effective treatment is boiling and mechanical filtration.  UV light; chemicals/halogens may be effective.

b.     Bacteria can be salmonella and many others.  Symptoms may appear in a few days and include diarrhea and prolonged intestinal discomfort.  More serious disease is possible.  Treatment includes boiling and mechanical filtration. UV light; chemicals/halogens may be effective.

c.      Viruses such as hepatitis may have symptoms that can appear in a day with diarrhea, intestinal discomfort and a variety of other ailments. Treatment again includes boiling and mechanical filtration. UV light; chemicals/halogens may be effective when done for 5 minutes and more.

d.     Pesticides, herbicides, and other toxins may be present around agriculture and urban development.  Carbon components will remove some of these, but not all chemicals.

e.     Green algae will secrete harmful toxins and should be avoided if at all possible when you see it.

Remember several other things to help you have safe water to drink:

·       The best source of water will be a lake, pool, or slow moving stream.  There is less sediment in the water and the hard shelled protozoa will sink to the bottom reducing your chance of getting them from the surface. Also, surface water has more UV exposure reducing the pathogens.

·       Avoid collecting water to drink after a heavy rain.  Rain transports surface material and bacteria.

·       You should also select your water in area with little evidence of animal or human activity.

·       Use a prefilter of at least a bandanna or a coffee filter before your final filter processing.

·       Snow may not be save as bacterial can live form months in ice.

Short of collecting rain water or dew, boiling your water source in a wilderness area is usually the best alternative.  Of course, the best thing to do is to find a way to carry enough safe drinking water with you when you travel in the outdoors.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

 

References-Additional Reading

Backcountry Water: What are the risks?
http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/water-risks.html

How to Find and Purify Water in the Wilderness
http://indefinitelywild.gizmodo.com/how-to-find-and-purify-drinking-water-in-the-wildernes-1580821351

 

How to Collect Safe Drinking Water from the Wilderness
http://thesecretyumiverse.wonderhowto.com/how-to/collect-safe-drinking-water-from-wilderness-0133419/

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Watch out for bats!|Nature|Wildlife

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/ 

Here's your outdoor tip on bats.

Watch out for bats!

Keep your hair covered!

Stay away from that blood sucker!

You don’t want to get rabies!

Many times when the subject of bats comes up during a nature walk in the woods this kind of distorted information comes up.  Bats make up the second largest order of mammals so it’s difficult to provide a great deal of specific information about bats in this short tip, but I’d like to share some general truths that are correct about many species of bats:

Bats don’t fly for your hair.  They are not blind. Blind as a bat is totally false.  They can see as well as you. You’re an object they want to avoid and even in the dark they will use their sonar to escape you and other large obstacles.

There are some vampire bats in the United States, but most are in South America.  They look to small animals for their blood and they are seldom found where humans are available to provide a blood meal.  Most bats are strictly insect eaters consuming hundreds of insects an hour. On the positive side vampire bats have a special chemical in their saliva that keeps blood from clotting and scientists have used it to develop medicine that helps humans that suffer from blood clots and strokes.

Some other information about bats in general includes:

1.      Bats can carry rabies, but it is not common.  Although there was a bat rabies scare in recent history, rabies infections in bats have been found in less than one percent of bats.

2.      Many bats return to the same roost each year and start maternity colonies in the spring.

3.      Some Bats are hibernators and usually enter caves, buildings, and even sewers in the fall to hibernate in cold climates.

4.      A hibernating little brown bat can hold its breath for 48 minutes.

5.      There are many different species of bats and some also migrate for the seasons.

6.      Individual bats can live to be 30 years old and colonies may stay in the same location for 100 years.

7.      Bats are the only mammal that can fly.

8.      Thailand’s Bumblebee Bat is the smallest mammal in the world.

9.      There are only two known species of bats that have the ability to walk on the ground.  The lesser short-tailed bat and the American common vampire bat.

10.  There are only 6 species of bats that roost upright rather than the usual hanging upside down.

11.  Common predators of bats are owls, hawks, snakes, raccoons and foxes—cats will hunt them if given the opportunity.  Humans can be added to the list.  Few people eat bats, but many people needlessly kill bats out of unfounded fear.

Bats can be destructive…

Bats are largely helpful in controlling unwanted flying insects, but they can be destructive in homes and other structures.  There are few chemicals that are approved to control bats. Mothballs can be temporary repellents. Lights and strong current of air from fans can discourage them. Fiberglass insulation is a repellent to bats so insulating walls and the attic will serve a dual purpose of energy conservation and bat control. The best solution is to close entry points near the roof edge such as under the eaves, soffits, vents, or cracks around the chimney.  Bats are able to squeeze though openings as small as 3/8 inch. 

Bat droppings are called guano in some parts of the world and it is used for fertilizer. A problem is that it may act as a growth medium for microbes and cause disease such as histoplasmosis.  Urine evaporates quickly leaving a slippery crystalline residue. Besides droppings, rub marks on siding at entry openings can be indicators of the presence of bats.  Rub marks are due to the body oils of the bats and may also contain bat hairs.  They will be dark in contrast with the siding or wood.

If you are bitten…

The best rule to follow when handling bats is DON’T. Bat teeth are very sharp and some people say you cannot even feel the bite.  If you have been bitten, cleanse the wound with soap and water and immediately seek medical help.  Although infection with rabies is uncommon, it is possible for rabies to be transmitted through the bite.  If the bat is dead or captured, it can be tested, but otherwise rabies shots are needed.

A rabid bat does not show the symptoms normally associated with rabies.  It does not foam at the mouth or attack acting deranged.  Instead, it will be on the ground or clinging to a wall and be quiet.  If you find a bat that seems out of place, assume that it may be infected and avoid it.

So…watch out for bats, but not out of fear.  They can be our friends by controlling flying pests at night.  As with any wild animal, respect their place in the environment and enjoy their presence in the outdoors.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

 

References-Additional Reading

Incredible Bats
http://www.incrediblebats.com/batinfo.html

What should you know about bats
http://nj.gov/health/cd/rabies/documents/shouldknow_bats.pdf

Are bats harmful?
http://www.orkin.com/wildlife/bats/are-bats-harmful/

 

Bats
http://askabiologist.asu.edu/explore/bats

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Plastic Polution|Nature|Wildlife

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/ 

Here's your outdoor tip on fighting plastic pollution.

Plastic is here with us to stay and surrounds us in the form of grocery bags, food containers, drink bottles and a variety of plastic products.  More plastic was made in the past ten years than in previously in our history.

And unfortunately it’s finding its way into our outdoors and oceans.  It may be hard to believe, but billions of pounds of plastic can be found floating in the ocean making up almost 40 percent of the ocean’s surface. About 300 million tons of plastic are made each year and about 300 thousand tons of that production eventually end up in the ocean. Thousands of seabirds, turtles, seals and other marine animals are killed each year after eating plastic or getting snarled in it. 

The EPA says that every piece of plastic that has ever been made still exists.  Ocean pollution starts on land and with its low density, plastic is carried by wind and rain into the seas. More and more microbeads of plastic that are used in toothpastes and cosmetics are flowing into our ecosystem. The North Pacific alone has a flotilla of plastic the size of Texas with small plastic particles suspended just below the surface.  It’s thought that fish in the North Pacific ingest 12-24 tons of plastic each year causing death or transfer of plastic up the food chain to their predators—including humans. 

Plastic debris in water absorbs dangerous pollutants like PCBs that are passed up the food chain to other animals.  Plastic pollution also directly impacts our economy with dollars spent in beach, lake and river clean ups, tourism losses and damages to fishing and related industries.  Some tourist destinations are littered with garage and almost look like landfills.

Some causes and results of our problems are:

1.     Half the plastic we produce is used once and then thrown away

2.     We throw away enough plastic to circle the earth four times

3.     We only recover about five percent of the plastics we produce

4.     The average American throws way about 190 pounds of plastic each year

5.     Plastic accounts for about ten percent of our total waste

6.     Americans throw away 35 billion plastic water bottles each year

7.     500 billion plastic bags are used in the world or more than one million each minute

8.     It takes 400-1000 years for plastic to degrade

9.     The body absorbs plastic chemicals with 93 percent of Americans age six or older test positive for BPA

Here’s how we can help:

1.     Choose to reuse shopping bags and water bottles

2.     Carry reusable utensils with you in the outdoors or when eating out

3.     Replace sandwich bags and juice cartons with reusable lunch bags/boxes and thermos bottles

4.     Bring your mug with you to work, restaurants, or the coffee shop

5.     Buy your music and video online through downloads

6.     Recycle—you should note most plastic will be labeled with a number to identity their type

7.     Avoid plastic bags and polystyrene foam as they have low recycling rates

8.     Volunteer for outdoor cleanups

9.     Carry with you a container to hold your trash and the trash you find from others when you are in the outdoors.

10.  Support environmental information rallies:  Be an advocate and tell everyone you know about the importance of reduction of plastic use

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

References-Additional Reading

22 Facts About Plastic Pollution (And 10 Things We Can Do About It)

http://ecowatch.com/2014/04/07/22-facts-plastic-pollution-10-things-can-do-about-it/

Mystery: Scientists find plastic garbage at 88% of ocean sites, but only 1% of the trash is accounted for

http://www.naturalnews.com/045842_plastic_garbage_ocean_pollution_consumer_waste.html#ixzz36Q0MWmCb

Ocean plastics pollution: A global tragedy for our oceans and sea life

 http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/ocean_plastics/

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Fly Bites|Wildlife|Nature

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/ 

 

Here's your outdoor tip on biting flies.

Flies are probably next to mosquitos in being the most unwanted guests at your outdoor picnic.  Most people have been bitten more than once by some type of fly.  There are about 120,000 species of flies in the world and many bite humans for their blood.  These fly bites may transmit disease to people or transfer disease to food that they land on and humans later eat. Each fly species has its own habits and ecology, but I’d like to share with you some information on a few flies that you might come in contact with. Most winged insects have four wings, but flies have only two wings.  Her mouthparts are designed to suck up liquid and for piercing. 

Like mosquitoes, biting flies find humans by sensing carbon dioxide, warmth, perspiration and movement.  Dark clothing is their preference.  Once landed the fly uses its piercing mouthparts to lacerate the skin and to inject an anticoagulant to keep the human blood flowing.  This can trigger an allergic reaction or transmit disease.

In the United States, deer flies are one of the flies that transmit disease to humans.  Rabbit fever is a bacterial disease that can be transmitted by deer flies.  These yellow-brown flies are about ¼ inch long about the size of a house fly and most prevalent in the spring.  Their larva or maggots are aquatic leaving the adults to be found near streams, lakes and marshes.

Both deer and horse flies have scissor mouthparts that cut the skin with a painful bite to enable them to suck up the blood.  Horse flies can be more than 1 inch long and are usually black with some having a green head and shiny green eyes.  Their larvae live in water or moist ground where they can prey on other insects before migrating to dryer soil for their cocoon stage.  It may take two years for them to become adult flies.

The stable fly is a gray fly about ¼ inch long with four dark stripes on its back.  It looks like a house fly with a pointed proboscis through which they suck blood.  They are most active early in the morning or late afternoon attacking the ankles with a sharp, stabbing pain.  Their larvae are similar to house flies with their eggs laid in rotting materials.

Black flies are humpbacked flies about 1/8 inch long.  They are also known as buffalo gnats.  They do not carry disease, but can inflict severe injury with their bites when there are large numbers.  The frequently create allergic reactions with considerable swelling and bleeding and slow healing bites.  They prefer to attack the head or areas with tight fitting clothing.

Biting midges are flies that should not be confused with other non-biting, larger midges.  The biters are less than 1/32 inch long and often called no-see-ums.  They are small enough to go through window screens and can be serious pests on lakes and rivers.  Many will suck human blood and also go after other species of insects including mosquitos. 

Sand flies are no more than 1/8 inches with hairy brown-gray bodies and wings that form a V shape when they are at rest.  They feed on humans especially at night and are suspected of transmitting several diseases.

Control of flies is difficult:

1.  Burning smoky candles and torches can be of some help.

2.  Many pesticides kill flies only on contact and flies may pick up some of these chemicals from surface contact. 

3.  Deet and a few other chemicals might be effective, but many normal mosquito repellents are ineffective. 

4.  Head nets and keeping your body covered is one of the best methods of prevention.

5.  Heavy applications of skin oil might help with the smallest of flies. 

6.  Some people say that Garlic Oil, Lavender Oil, Peppermint Oil and Eucalyptus Oil is helpful, but there is no guarantee of success.

Methods for caring for a wound or wounds are also limited

1.  Treat a wound with soap and water. 

2.  Do not scratch it and create a secondary infection.

3.  Rubbing may spread possible poisons and disease.

4.  Applying ice for a few minutes may help.

5.  Vinegar might help the itching.

6.  It is best to seek medical attention if severe pain or bleeding persists. 

Flies can be a true challenge to your outdoor adventures and unfortunately avoidance is the best method for relief.  Protecting your body with netting and long sleeve shirt and pants are the best preventative measure for a serious fly problem.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

 

 

References-Additional Reading

Types of Fly Bites
http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/fly-bites

What caused this bug bite?
http://www.healthline.com/health/bug-bites

Biting Flies
http://www.orkin.com/flies/biting-flies/

Biting Flies
http://www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/pcbitingflies.htm

 

 

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