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Water West Virginia

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Last Thursday [2014 –Jan- 09]  in West Virginia, a chemical spill was identified that flowed into  a river a mile or so up stream from the intake point that was the water source for 9 counties. Other towns down stream from this also harvest water from this river. This chemical [4-methylcyclohexane methanol ] which is a hydrocarbon, can cause eye & skin irritation, headaches and breathing difficulties, among other not so fun reactions.

The best solution for most people is to have water storage PRIOR to any contamination incident.

It is difficult at best to process this type of contaminated water. The 4-methylcyclohexane methanol has a boiling point cooler than water. This makes it hard to process the water by distillation in a field situation. As with most hydrocarbons you can clean it up with activated carbon which is basically ground up charcoal which you can make at home.

We will discuss water treatment later.

Many if not most eateries who could not afford to truck in the volumes of clean water needed simply closed for the duration. To say that the economy in that region was adversely affected would be somewhat of an understatement.

On the Monday following the chemical spill I was listening to the news on the radio. Part of the report was that people were ‘abandoning their homes” and going to out laying communities ‘in search of food”.  This ties into a conversation that I had with S.W. about the declining ability of people to cook for themselves.

Late in the week the water department reported that the levels of the contaminate had fallen to ‘safe’ levels and the affected residents were told to run all of their taps to finish flushing out the water system and that after words the water would be safe to drink. BUT out of an abundance of caution, pregnant women should boil their water before consuming. This seems to be a ‘feel good’ bit of advice as discussed earlier.

The take away from this is [A] to have water storage in your home and office for consumption, [B] learn the actually facts of whatever you are faced with. [C] learn how to cook and do other stuff for yourself – which does not mean that you have to personally do everything yourself – so that you can tell when you are being lied to.

Fluid & electrolytes

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My observations & comments also make good teasers for further research on your part. ;]

Generally, it is very hard to drink too much water. Most of us do not drink enough water to begin with.

DON’T DRINK TOO MUCH WATER.

We all know that dehydration can be dangerous, leading to dizziness, seizures and death, but drinking too much water can be just as bad. In 2002, 28 year old Cynthia Lucero collapsed midway through the Boston marathon. Rushed to a hospital, she fell into a coma and died.  In the aftermath it emerged that she had drunk large amounts of water along the run. The excess liquid in her system induced a syndrome called ‘exercise-associated hyponatremia’ or EAH for short. In which an imbalance in the body’s sodium levels creates a dangerous swelling of the brain.

STATS up to one third of endurance athletes who collapse during events suffer from EAH. Between 1989 and 1996, when the US army mandated heavy fluid intake during exercise in high heat. EAH caused at least 6 deaths. [Statistically that is not very many.]

[And the Israelis have used the ‘over-drink’ plans for decades with good results]

DON”T drink more than 1.5 quarts of water per hour during sustained, intense exercise. But do consume plenty of salt along with your fluids.

BEAT THE HEAT

A rock formation in Utah called The Wave is remote and beautiful, but also arid and sweltering. This past July, a couple hiking the area was found dead after the afternoon heat overwhelmed them while hiking. Scarcely three weeks later, a 27 year old woman collapsed while hiking the wave with her husband and died before he could get help.

STAT an average of 675 people die each year in the US from heat related complications.

DO: carry lots of fluids, hike in the morning and let people know where you are going when trekking in the desert.

Both of these paragraphs were in the October 2013 issue of Popular Mechanics which is overall a great publication. I transcribed them both and may not be exactly as it was in the magazine.  As far as they go they make good teasers for greater research.

My observations & comments also make good teasers for further research on your part. ;]

Generally, it is very hard to drink too much water. Most of us do not drink enough water to begin with.

The topic of fluid and electrolyte balance is broad enough that literally volumes of books have been written about it. Sodium Chloride [NaCl or table salt] is only 1 of the major electrolytes and if you eat a modern diet you are getting WAY more sodium than you need, in fact most cardiologists recommend LIMITING your sodium intake to generally less than 2,000 mg [2 grams] a day. It was interesting a few years ago when I was trained [and FDA certified] to run a wet pack food cannery. Each 14 to 16 ounce can of product we add more than half a teaspoon of table salt. Potassium chloride [KCl or salt substitute]  is another very important electrolyte which when most people think of bananas as ‘the’ source. Potatoes are actually a better source of potassium. Salt substitute [aka No-Salt or NU-salt brand names] is considered by some a VERY dangerous, because this ONE person that they know got into [medical] trouble using it. Well yes, some people do get into trouble with it. There IS such a thing as over use or abuse of anything. People get into trouble with too much table salt [NaCl]. Other electrolytes include magnesium, calcium, zinc, chloride and bicarbonate. EVERYTHING in moderation aka, don’t be stupid.

An interesting side note on potassium – it is a vital nutrient and it is one of the 3 ‘drugs’ used during lethal injection when the state kills someone.

See another post on re-hydration drink.