Speaking of Safety
OSHA’s on the look-out and their recently announced National Emphasis Program (NEP) shows they are focused on preventing heat-related injuries and illnesses in a wide range of industries.
Employers are encouraged to review and familiarize themselves with the NEP to prevent heat-related violations. Failure to do so can result in significant penalties from OSHA.
Sodium plays an important role in allowing the human body to function properly, but most people are consuming far more than their bodies really need—and this can cause more harm than good. The American Heart Association found that an astounding 90% of Americans consume too much sodium, with an average of 3,400 milligrams each day. Only 15% of this sodium is naturally occurring. More than 70% of it comes from processed and restaurant foods, with an additional 10% added during cooking or eating.
Heat related illness is a concern in any weather – anywhere! As we are in the dog days of summer, working in abnormally hot conditions offers up an all too common set of conditions to guard against… heat related illnesses.
2 of the most common heat related illnesses are Heat Exhaustion and Heat Stroke.
Many of the doctors and experts say that we need to drink two to two and a half liters of water each and every day. That’s about a half a gallon, to a little bit more than a half a gallon, of liquids a day. Now that is just for when we are at normal activity that doesn’t include if we were out in the sun, playing sports, or doing any other type of strenuous activity. Obviously when those things happen we need to increase that amount of liquid.
Unfortunately, most people wait until they’re thirsty to take a drink. Â But the truth is that if you’re feeling thirst, you’re already in a slightly dehydrated state. Â Catching dehydration early is key to addressing it before it has an impact on cognitive and physical function. Â Luckily, there are many other signs workers and their supervisors can be on the lookout for.
It’s not all about fluids. Â You could be forgiven for thinking that the only way to prevent dehydration is to drink fluids. Â After all, that’s about the only thing that comes to most people’s minds when they’re told to stay hydrated. Â But fluid intake is only part of staying safe in the heat or doing physically demanding work. Â In this article, we’ll look at 5 other factors that play a role in keeping your body hydrated.