Influence of hydration status and fluid replacement on heat tolerance while wearing NBC protective clothing

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of hypohydration and fluid replacement on tolerance to an uncompensable heat stress. Eight healthy young males completed a matrix of six trials in an environmental chamber, set at 40°C and 30% relative humidity, while wearing nuclear, biological, and chemical protective clothing. Subjects performed either light (3.5 km · h⁻¹, 0% grade, no wind) or heavy (4.8 km · h⁻¹, 4% grade, no wind) treadmill exercise combined with three hydration states [euhydration with fluid replacement (EU/F), euhydration without fluid replacement (EU/NF), and hypohydration with fluid replacement (H/F)]. Hypohydration of 2.2% body mass was achieved by exercise and fluid restriction on the day preceding the trials. No differences in the endpoint mean skin temperature (T¯_sk), sweat rate, or rectal temperature (T _re) were observed among the hydration conditions for either work rate. During light exercise, the change in T _re (ΔT _re) was significantly higher with H/F than EU/F after 40 min, and heart rate was greater after 25 min. The heart rate was greater during EU/NF than during EU/F after 60 min. Tolerance times were significantly greater for EU/F than for either EU/NF or H/F. With heavy exercise, no differences in ΔT _re were observed across hydration conditions. Compared to EU/F, heart rates were higher after 10 and 30 min for H/F and EU/NF, respectively. Tolerance times were significantly less during H/F than with either of the EU conditions. Stroke volume was significantly decreased in H/F trials compared to EU/F trials for both light and heavy work rates, but no differences in cardiac output were observed. It was concluded that even minor levels of hypohydration significantly impaired exercise tolerance in a severely uncompensable heat stress environment at both light and heavy exercise intensities.