After a marathon or longer distance, I notice a lot of salt covering my forehead and arms. What is the cause of this and is there a remedy? Is it good or bad and why do
I get it? – YSWAN CARA
ANSWER
What you are seeing is indeed a build up of salt from sweating. During endurance exercise the sweat that you secrete evaporates and leaves behind the minerals secreted along with it. You should not worry about it because our modern day diets include more salt than our recommended daily intake. This may be a way of your body getting rid of excess salt.
Unfortunately there is no remedy but maybe you should monitor your salt intake. This should help, but it seems you are what some researchers have termed a ‘salty sweater’. You might be genetically predisposed to sweating out larger amounts of salt than other athletes.
If you are still able to participate and complete sporting activities without any medical complications then this is not a problem, but if you are suffering from any medical
problems because of it, then I suggest you seek help from a sports physician.
Modern Athlete Expert – Nicholas Tam
BSc (Med.) Hons Exercise Science (UCT), MSc (Med.) Student. adidas Technical Representative, adidas SA (pty) Ltd. UCT/MRC Research Unit for Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, Department of Human Biology
Sports Science Institute of South Africa, Newlands.
Medical Orthotist and Podiatrist at the Centre for Sports Medicine and Orthopaedics in Rosebank, Johannesburg, with 28 years experience in diagnosing and treating runners and other sportspeople, including many top cricketers.
