Use of Wet Bulb Globe Temperature to Make Informed Decisions in Activity Modification During Physical Activity in the Heat

Athletes, soldiers, and laborers are often placed in situations where self-regulation of activity pace and intensity might be limited due to the inherent demand of their tasks. This becomes a concern when these individuals are exposed to extreme heat, where they may experience uncompenable heat stress and suffer exertional heat illness. Therefore, it becomes important for the health care professionals and/or employers of the athletes, solders, and laborers to establish a policy to mitigate the extreme heat exposure, and control the duration and intensity of the activity to prevent overwhelming of one’s thermoregulatory capacity. Heat activity modification guideline is one of many exertional heat illness prevention measures that can be utilized to facilitate behavioral change in athletic and military training, and occupational labor. Specifically, wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) based activity modification guidelines have been utilized widely across these populations.

The presentation will revisit the theoretical and empirical evidence behind the activity modification during physical activity in the heat. Examples from athletic, military, and occupational settings will be examined to provide real-life scenarios in which health care professionals and governing bodies of these populations utilized the WBGT based activity modification to minimize the risk of exertional heat illness and optimize work quality and/or productivity.