Using a sweat suit to lose weight is one of the unhealthiest and most dangerous ways to shed pounds. The fact is that sweating to lose weight can cause kidney failure or a heart attack and result in death. Despite this, some people identify a need for quick weight loss as an overriding factor in the decision-making process -- usually related to weight requirements for a competitive sporting event. Fortunately, regulatory bodies in organized sports are now working to educate athletes about the dangers of using sweat suits to lose weight.
Why It Works
Sweat suits contribute to weight loss by interfering with the body's natural cooling system. A sweat suit, often used in combination with a rubber or plastic under-layer, traps body heat generated by intense exercise, such as riding an exercise bike. This leads to an elevated body temperature and heavy sweating and results in temporary weight loss due to dehydration. When you rehydrate your body, the weight will return.
Why It Is Dangerous
Sweat consists of water, sodium, potassium and calcium, essential for maintaining proper fluid balance in the body. As you become dehydrated, water and minerals move out of the cells and into the bloodstream in an attempt to maintain blood pressure. At the same time, you begin sweating as your body attempts to cool itself, which it cannot accomplish due to your sweat suit. The longer this goes on, says the Merck Manuals Online Medical Library, the more water moves out of body cells and tissues, and eventually they begin to dry out and malfunction. At this point, because you are sweating so profusely, blood pressure begins to drop, resulting in dizziness or faintness. Without immediate intervention, your organs, especially the kidneys, liver and brain, go into shock and can incur severe damage, such as brain swelling, seizures, kidney failure, coma or death.
Common Factors
Although the effects of using a sweat suit to lose weight may vary due to differences in body chemistry, some factors appear common. For example, the February 28, 1998, edition of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report contains a report of three cases involving the deaths of student wrestlers. Each of these students, says the CDC, dieted and restricted fluid intake prior to exercising, used a cotton sweat suit in combination with an underlying vapor-proof layer to lose additional weight and performed intense exercise in a hot environment. Although the report does not specify the temperature of the room, the National Collegiate Athletic Association defines a hot environment as anything over 79 degrees Fahrenheit.
Potential
In the first case the CDC reported on, a 19-year-old male student lost 9 lb. within 8.5 hours, suffered a heart attack within an hour of finishing and died. In the second case, a 22-year-old male student lost 3.5 lb. within about 3.5 hours and died soon after from hyperthermia, or heat stroke. At the time of his death, the CDC reports he had a rectal temperature of 108 degrees Fahrenheit. In the third case, a 21-year-old male student lost 4.3 lb. in two exercise sessions totaling 2.75 hours, separated by a 15-minute break. One hour later the student died from kidney failure.
Solution
The NCAA now bans the use of sweat suits, saunas and steam rooms as well as other unhealthy, quick weight loss methods, such as laxatives, self-induced vomiting and extreme calorie and water restriction. Instead, the NCAA and other organizations established a new set of rules and guidelines regarding weight loss for athletes, and work to promote healthy weight loss practices in partnership with health care professionals.
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