heat stress Hydration
What to Drink
Water
Water will almost
always maintain
hydration during
work in the heat,
as long as you eat
regular meals to
replace salt lost
in sweat.
What to Avoid
Energy Drinks
• Some energy drinks contain much
more caeine than standard servings
of coee, tea, or soft drinks.
• Drinking several energy drinks per
day can raise your caeine levels
enough to aect your heart. High
caeine levels can be risky when
added to the strain placed on your
body by heat.
• Many energy drinks contain as much
or more sugar as soft drinks, which
adds hundreds of extra calories to
your diet.
Alcohol
• Alcohol can cause dehydration.
• Drinking alcohol within 24 hours of
working in the heat can increase the
risk of heat illness.
What about salt tablets?
NIOSH does not recommend taking salt tablets.
In most cases, salt can be replaced by eating
normal meals and snacks throughout the day.
Do not skip meals.
What about caeine?
The amount of caeine in tea, coee, and soft
drinks probably will not have an eect on
overall hydration.
Do I need sports drinks?
In general, eating regular meals with adequate
water intake is sucient to maintain water and
electrolyte balance.
For prolonged sweating lasting several hours,
sports drinks with balanced electrolytes are
another option to replace salt lost in sweat.
Heavy consumption of sports drinks will add
unnecessary calories to your diet due to the
added sugar.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2017-126
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