Affects of antihistamines on hydration

jetskr

 I wasn't sure if this should go in the medical or nutrition forums.  It could really go in either and I happened to pick this one.

Due to some pretty severe allergies and asthma I'm on a daily antihistamine.  With all the talk of hydration and electrolyte levels in the forums as well as my own experience at IMOO last fall I am wondering how this would affect my hydration levels and ability to fully hydrate.

Leading up to Wisconsin last fall I was taking Clariton every day but took Clariton D for a couple days before the race to help ensure that I wouldn't have any problems out in the course.  During the day I misjudged the distance between the aide stations on the bike course and wasn’t able to get enough water or calories in due to the concentrated infinit.  I tried carrying an extra bottle from the aide station in a jersey pocket but with side pockets it just fell out.  On the run I was so far behind on electrolytes and calories that I ended up shivering, dizzy, and nauseous.  While people were putting sponges on their heads I was putting on arm warmers.  Not a good scene.  In the med tent the Dr’s told me that I only lost 3% of my body weight so no IV but they kept feeding me broth until I walked out OK.

How much of an impact on my race could the antihistamine have had?  Day to day I generally feel pretty dried out and even without a morning workout it isn’t until later in the day, after drinking water all day, that I start feeling better.  It’s worse when I workout first thing in the morning.

Has anyone else experienced anything like this?  Do any of our medical friends have any suggestions?

Thanks!

Coach Patrick

Absolutely this will dehydrate you, although how it technically affects you I don't know. I'd've thought that your training would have brought to light how to adapt...but sounds like you'll need to really have extra fluids at all times, just in case.

It will be good to hear what others who use this stuff have to say...

jetskr

I've started to pay closer attention to it now and have noticed that it really affects my ability to sweat. If I'm dehydrated then my HR just sky rockets and I over heat without much sweating. When I'm fully hydrated then I sweat buckets and can create a good sized puddle under my bike while on the trainer.

I guess part of the question would be: How can I increase my morning hydration? I already chug a pint of water as soon as I get up but that doesn't do much. Just curious if anyone else has any ideas.

coop6

Have you tried tracking your sodium intake using something like Loseit or myfitnesspal? You can track fluids as well on myfitnesspal... Maybe if you quantified your intake over the day related to your workouts, you could figure out where the imbalance is.

jetskr

Hey Sarah,

I just started using myfitnesspal and didn't even know you could track your water intake. I'll make sure to start doing that. One other thing I started doing was using nuun during workouts and one additional tab randomly during the day. That has helped as I made a nice sized puddle under the trainer this morning.

This leads me to more questions about what it will take to properly hydrate during longer or hotter races. I'm doing Lavaman Oly in April so that may be a good first test run to see how things are going. So much to this sport!

jburbatt

I take allergy meds pretty much all the time and agree that you need to acclimate to them. Claritin D has quite a bigger punch than regular Claritin, which is likely why you had dehydration issues. I find that when I'm on any D-formula I need to take extra salt. So depending on the temps dictates how much salt I'm taking. So hotter days require salt more frequently than the cooler days. I don't usually ever run with anything but water, but I do always talk salt tabs else I'm in trouble.