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Fantastic
Findings
Hyperthermia Induces Venous Blood Alkalosis:
A Study in Five Ironman Triathletes
Ross A. Hauser,
MD & Joseph J. Cukla, LPN
To study the relationship between athletic performance in extreme heat and blood chemistry abnormalities, five Ironman triathletes were subjected to a hyperthermic chamber for one hour. The goal was to simulate the excessive heat and the feelings they experienced during their suboptimal athletic performances in the Ironman Triathlon. The hypothesis of the study was that accompanying the hyperthermia was extreme blood alkalosis and this, not dehydration or electrolyte abnormalities, was responsible for these five athletes’ suboptimal performances during their various Ironman races.
One of the subjective feelings that the participants self-rated during this experiment was their perceived ability to run. This feeling of “ability to run” steadily decreased during their time in the hyperthermic chamber. As their core temperatures increased in the chamber, so did their venous serum blood pH levels, with all participants sustaining extreme degrees of venous blood alkalosis. It was this blood alkalosis that correlated closest to their feelings of an inability to run and other unpleasant feelings that they experienced during their recent Ironman Triathlon races.
Journal of Prolotherapy. 2010;(2)1:282-289.
KEYWORDS: alkalosis, athlete, athletic performance, blood pH, hyperthermia. |
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