Heat Stress:

Heat stress, heat exhaustion or even heat stroke can be caused by the inability of the body to cool itself down by sweating. This overheating can occur when your body temperature and the surrounding air are the same, or when you actually gain heat from the environment because the external temperature is higher than your body temperature. This prevents you from sweating, which inhibits any heat loss. It can also occur in areas where the air is moist and warm, and thus evaporation from the skin is slowed or even prohibited. Individuals who work outdoors doing any kind of physical labor need to make sure that they stay cool as possible because not only are they subject to the direct heat outdoors but they are producing extra heat from their physical load. In fact, physical work demands 4 times the energy of work done from a chair. Ones ability to perform well, or even to feel well is affected by an elevated body temperature and dehydration. Higher heat tolerance can be seen in a few groups of people, such as younger individuals, slimmer people more so than overweight ones, and more physically fit ones. Heat illnesses are quite commonly seen in young athletes as well as military recruits.
Signs of heat related illnesses range from headaches, fainting, weakness and clammy skin to cessation of sweating, mental confusion, seizures and convulsions. How can you control heat illnesses? One should try drink a lot of water all day long and wear a Cool Medics vest, which you regenerate with water every few hours as needed. Cool Medics vests work on an evaporative cooling technique once it has been activated in water. When the moisture in the fabric evaporates through the hydrophilic fibers, heat is removed which causes the surrounding area to cool down, transferring the cooling effect to the wearer. This process will cool the wearer down by 20 to 25 degrees, the effects of which can last anywhere from 4 ½ to 8 hours

Why do our products work well for managing heat stress, and for people suffering from multiple sclerosis?

 

 

Some 10 years ago Cool Medics developed and started manufacturing cooling products for the equine industry. It proved to be very successful and it soon became apparent that our cooling products were being used for other purposes. We received anecdotes from individuals with medical problems such as Multiple Sclerosis, Menopause and inflammation injuries, relaying their experiences with our products. The products were helping to provide relief as well as allowing individuals to cope with symptoms and improve daily life. On some occasions we actually witnessed the transformation from distress to relief. More incidents of persons having heat stroke or heat stress symptoms being relieved by placement of our vests or blankets on their bodies, prompted us to further pursue this avenue making our products available to healthcare providers too.  Recently we developed new products for the Military, and we are currently working on completing products for the Public Safety industry.  

 

The products we manufacture are constructed from a patented three-layer fabric that by combining hydrophilic fibers into a fibrous batting core and a thermally conductive lining, will provide cooling after allowing the product to soak in water for no longer than 10 to 30 seconds.  The water activates the cooling process by charging the fibers with moisture and creating an environment for evaporation. Evaporative Cooling works on the premise that when water evaporates from a surface, that surface becomes cooler because heat is expended to change the water from a liquid into a vapor.  A nice breeze on a hot day cools us because the current of air makes perspiration evaporate quickly.  The effectiveness of the products is based on its ability to absorb heat from the body and release that heat to the outside environment.  The water that is absorbed by the batting material provides a heat transfer medium for this effect.  Thus, the products are capable of providing evaporative cooling, a principal means for body cooling.

Patients with heat exhaustion and Multiple sclerosis diagnoses are both in danger of overheating or contacting heat stroke unless they can get immediate relief from a cooling source.  For Patients with heat exhaustion, Evaporative Cooling is an initial treatment as it involves stabilization to avoid progression to heat stroke. “Immediate initiation of rapid and effective cooling is crucial in a patient with heatstroke” (Management of Heatstroke and Heat Exhaustion, James L. Glazer). One case series found a trend towards improved survival in patients cooled to a core temperature below 38.9C within 60 minutes, and another report found improved survival when patients were cooled to the same level within 30 minutes (Cooling methods used in the treatment of exertion heat illness, JE Smith). Although evidence is limited, it would suggest that initial results might be improved when core temperature is reduced as quickly as possible.  The products we manufacture are capable of providing just that environment necessary for immediate cooling.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a very debilitating disease for those who suffer its affliction.  Manifestation of symptoms varies with environmental conditions, seasons of the year, and the patients’ activities. A very common complaint from MS patients is the decrease in strength and onset of fatigue concurrent with increases in climatic temperature and/or core temperature. 

Decreasing the core temperature of these patients has been shown to reduce the effects of elevated temperature. Reduction of these symptoms have been achieved by different methods of cooling, such as a liquid cooling garments Research of MS patients wearing these types of products was performed by NASA Ames Research center and Lockheed Martin Engineering & Sciences. Most of the MS patients found relief in the cooling periods including feeling less tired and having more control over their muscular movements after about ½ hour of the cooling period. Most also found that these changes lasted for more than an hour after removal of the cooling garment while some subjects even felt better for a period lasting 3-4 hrs after being cooled.  Once again, our products have been proven (see our testimonials) to reduce and prevent heat stress in individuals with MS and other heat related illnesses.                          

Our animal blankets and jackets are also widely used for heat stress reduction in horses, dogs and Llamas.  In horses we have especially found that it helps those afflicted with anhidrosis.  Anhidrosis is the inability to sweat, and can affect all breeds of horses at any time of their life.  It varies in intensity but it can be detrimental to animals that canot control their own temperature.

Cool Medics products include cooling vests, head coolers and blankets that when immersed in water for a period of no longer than 30 seconds will remain cool for 6 to 7 hours at 114 degrees Fahrenheit. Longer periods of coolness of up to 9 hours will be achieved when indoors and not exposed to the sun. The product can be recharged by simply placing in water for a period of no more than 30 seconds, and thus, recommencing the whole cooling cycle.