How heat can impact you while playing sports in high school, college

LANSING, Mich. (WILX)—Many sports camps or practices are held during the summer at high schools, colleges, and universities. With the extreme heat this week, these activities have become a little more dangerous.

Heat-related illness is preventable, but it remains a leading cause of death and injury among college and high school athletes.

Later on Tuesday, the sun will shine bright and bring the heat. This trend is expected to last through the week, with temperatures in the 90s. Just being outside for an extended period of time could be hazardous to your health, but what if you had to play a sport like baseball, soccer, or even football?

High-exertion sports can be a significant risk for athletes when the temperatures are sore. Heat exhaustion, exercise-associated muscle cramps, and heat stroke are among the significant concerns.

Being prepared is frequently the best way to combat these issues.

Moving practices indoors is often the first choice for prevention; however, not every school can do so.

For those who will be on the field, taking several breaks, having cool-down stations, drinking lots of fluids, and, of course, having an athletic trainer present can actually save lives.

Jackson’s fire captain said they had been called to sporting events for extreme heat.

“We’ve ran to sport events where high school athletes start having the heat cramps, cramping up from the heat, not staying hydrated,” said Jackson Fire Capt. Ryan Hendricks

Heat exhaustion is usually associated with elevated but safe body temperatures; heat stroke can occur when the body temperature reaches above 104 degrees Fahrenheit.

This could cause an athlete to collapse, become confused, or have altered consciousness.

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