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March 18, 2008
Swelling During Hot Weather Uncomfortable But Normal
This past week we were in Austin, TX for the SXSW Music Festival, a vacation for me and a business trip for my husband's work. Austin experienced it's hottest day of 2008 on Friday when the temperature topped out at 92 degrees. If you've never been to the desert, then you may not have experienced the quick evaporation of perspiration in dry conditions. Because such quick evaporation, a normal phenomenon for cooling the body during hot temperatures, goes unnoticed, dehydration can occur quickly. The way to tell that you are perspiring is rest one body part upon another, whether it's your head resting on your hand, or your bare legs resting against one another. Take away the resting body part and if you're soaking wet, you're losing fluids quickly.
Also, if you're drinking a lot of fluids and not needing to empty your bladder, you may not be drinking enough. I should have recognized that urinating only once on such a hot day would put me at risk for mild dehydration (even though it was a healthy color). What made me realize I probably wasn't adequately replenishing my fluids was that around 3:30 that afternoon my feet started to cramp. I chalked it up to fatigue.
What I found to be interesting was that the combined heat and extensive standing, followed by a cross town walk resulted in swollen fingers and ankles. I knew my hands were swollen because I could feel it in my fingers when I bent them. This happens sometimes when I've done a lot of walking or running--I guess centripetal force encourages interstitial fluid into the extremities. It wasn't until we got back to our room that I kicked off my shoes and noticed my ankles and feet. Normally, by hyperextending my toes, the extensor tendons pop right up to the surface of the skin. After this day I couldn't see them at all and my ankles exhibited areas of puffiness.
What I'm curious to know is why do we swell on a hot day after hanging out or extensive walking? According to HealthCentral this phenomena is common. What I want to know is why? What mechanisms in the body are at work to cause this to happen? According to an archived article from 1921 it is because the blood is drawn to dilated capillaries at the surface of the skin in order to cool the body through perspiration. Other sources suggest an unknown etiology or too much sodium. If you know the answer to this question, e-mail me and let me know.
By the way, the swelling had gone down by the next morning and my ankles and feet were back to normal. Of course, I was tired, because I was up many times in the night in need of the restroom. At least something was working right!
tags: massage massagetherapy wellness massage therapy bodywork health
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Posted by linda at March 18, 2008 9:15 AM
