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Backpacking health risks?


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  • #1302735
    Kevin Burton
    BPL Member

    @burtonator

    Locale: norcal

    So is there any database of health risks for backpackers?

    Trying to figure out what to prepare for – statistically speaking.

    Heart attack, exposure, hypothermia, etc.

    I want to see real data though.

    #1984688
    Justin Baker
    BPL Member

    @justin_baker

    Locale: Santa Rosa, CA

    I've read that drowning and exposure are the biggest killers.

    #1984902
    Paul Mason
    Member

    @dextersp1

    #1984906
    Jake D
    BPL Member

    @jakedatc

    Locale: Bristol,RI

    crashing while driving to the trailhead

    #1984908
    Kevin Burton
    BPL Member

    @burtonator

    Locale: norcal

    Different thread of course but so far , on two trips it has kind of been working.

    I lost about 1-2 lbs of weight per trip (but that's ok because I have 10 to lose).

    I don't feel hungry at all and these trips have been 2-3 days.

    I think that I was at a 2000 calorie deficit per day.

    So we will see. I'm not sure what would happen after doing this for like a WEEK.

    #1984920
    Paul Mason
    Member

    @dextersp1

    http://www.getoutzine.com/node/437.html

    Kevin,
    Update us on the food test.

    If you are only interested in death, look at the link above.

    In addition to the above I fear water borne illnesses and Lyme Disease.
    I don't live in the North East anymore but the disease is spreading.

    Get a personal location beacon.

    #1984923
    Dirk Rabdau
    Member

    @dirk9827

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    From what I've read, the overwhelming leading causes of death and injury in the outdoors are falls and drowning. This makes a lot of sense, since people will engage in riskier behaviors such as scrambling up steep slopes/rock or crossing streams despite not always being very experienced in either activity. In many cases, the consequences of mishaps carry with it far greater risk than originally perceived – thus one could blame poor judgement on these accidents.

    Heart attacks account for a fair share as do lightning strikes. Bee stings cause far more deaths than animal attacks, which are incredibly rare.

    Mountain House Chili Mac also inflicts a large number of casualties every year.

    Dirk

    #1984991
    Sarah Kirkconnell
    BPL Member

    @sarbar

    Locale: Homesteading On An Island In The PNW

    Yeah, the casualties are the tentmates of the eaters of that ;-)

    #1984992
    Jay Wilkerson
    BPL Member

    @creachen

    Locale: East Bay

    3781
    Driving to the Trail-Head is always a big health risk on mountain roads!

    #1985003
    Bob Gross
    BPL Member

    @b-g-2-2

    Locale: Silicon Valley

    "Driving to the Trail-Head is always a big risk on mountain roads!"

    Jay, that looks almost like California Highway 108 west of Sonora Pass.

    –B.G.–

    #1985028
    Buck Nelson
    BPL Member

    @colter

    Locale: Alaska

    http://www.edarnell.com/Stats.htm

    Falls
    Hypothermia
    Drowning
    Natural Causes
    Avalanche

    Those seem to be the big ones, in order. I'm calling the "lost" fatalities hypothermia. Being lost itself doesn't hurt you.

    #1985031
    Leigh Baker
    BPL Member

    @leighb

    Locale: Northeast Texas Pineywoods

    Buck,
    Thanks for posting that….I think :-)
    Actually falls are one of my biggest fears, especially on solo trips. As a child I was fearless of heights, but over the past decade I've become the opposite. I think that fear makes it more dangerous than it would otherwise actually be.

    #1985100
    Jim W.
    BPL Member

    @jimqpublic

    Locale: So-Cal

    I say "Water" is the #1 cause of death:
    Falls: Being swept over a waterfall or slipping on wet rock.
    Hypothermia: From being wet due to falling in cold water or cold rain.
    Drowning. Of course water is usually involved.
    Dehydration (lack of water)
    Avalanches (frozen water)

    Also non-fatal health risks:
    Waterborne parasites (Giardia, etc)
    Burns (hot water)

    Last week in Yosemite the first person this year fell down Vernal Falls after climbing over the railing. At least there wasn't anyone there to die trying to stop him.

    Read up on Search and Rescue reports for plenty of examples.

    #1985136
    Steven McAllister
    BPL Member

    @brooklynkayak

    Locale: Arizona, US

    I seem to remeber statistics that stated that lightning was one of the top risks.
    I think one year it was the number one killer on the PCT.

    I think last year proved that drowning is near the top of the list on the AT.

    #1985140
    Michael Gillenwater
    BPL Member

    @mwgillenwater

    Locale: Seattle area

    http://www.besthealthdegrees.com/health-risks/

    A fun and simple graphic showing probabilities of dying while hiking relative to other activities. Upshot is that you are twice a likely to die due to a car accident. Although here is food for thought. Skydiving is 16 times safer than hiking.

    Of course take these stats with a grain of salt. Its an info graphic, not a rigorous study.

    #1985141
    Jim W.
    BPL Member

    @jimqpublic

    Locale: So-Cal

    Smoking is 75% likely to shorten a person's natural lifespan (I made that up). Playing Russian Roulette 1 time is 17% likely to shorten a person's lifespan (1:6 odds). Would you rather play one round of Russian Roulette or smoke one cigarette?

    Most hikers drive way more than they hike, and most skydivers probably don't do it too often.

    Statistics in the news are usually misused. Remember- 87.372% of all statistics are made up on the spot.

    #1985145
    Travis Leanna
    BPL Member

    @t-l

    Locale: Wisconsin

    45% of Jim W's posts are misleading.

    #1985146
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades
    #1985158
    Bob Bankhead
    BPL Member

    @wandering_bob

    Locale: Oregon, USA

    There is actually a book on that exact subject. It was part of my statistics library for many years.

    If you let a good statistician pick his classes, he can prove that black is white.

    stats

    #1985163
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    You're scarin' the sh!t out of me. I'm thinking of canceling all my trips and taking up backgammon. :(

    #1985184
    Bill Segraves
    BPL Member

    @sbill9000-2

    I find this a fascinating topic – risk assessment is a complex and very interesting topic, both from a psychological and from a quantitative perspective. We tend not to to do it very well, unless we have rigorous metrics, and as others have pointed out, the relevant statistics are as often abused as properly used. The edarnell.com page that Buck cited looks like a very nice attempt to break down the frequencies of fatal back-country events. IMO, it provides a pretty clear picture of the things one has to avoid to stay safe. The main thing I'm wondering after reading this summary is what proportion of the people were day-hikers and what proportion were multi-day backpackers. It has seemed to me for several years that most of the fatalities I hear about are among day-hikers, and it kind of makes sense. If I get lost backpacking, the biggest risk is that I'll worry someone by not getting out when planned. If a dayhiker gets lost and doesn't know how to create shelter, it can easily be fatal. I may also be wrong, but it's also my impression that it's usually dayhikers who have most of the worst falls (maybe it's just because there are more of them, or maybe the reporting's clearer).

    It can often be pretty trick to compare hiking risks to other risks, especially when there aren't clear data on the frequencies of events. I've often said that the drive to the trailhead is the most dangerous part, but is it really? It probably depends on where I'm backpacking. If I drive 1000 miles roundtrip, then my chance of dying from the trip is on the order of 1/100,000. I have no idea what most of the annual risks mean in the besthealthdegrees chart (were those people out for 5 days/year or 100?), but if the McKinley mountaineering data are to be believed, then a 10 day trip there gives me about 1/1000 risk (~ 100 times more than a 1000 mile drive). On well-traveled, gentle sections of the AT, my chances of dying from an accident are probably lower than they are on a typical non-hiking day. If I'm solo in some rugged true wilderness, it might be closer to the McKinley stats.

    What seems most clear to me personally, though, is that the biggest risk associated with backpacking is not doing it. Other than motor vehicle-related risks, falls, and poisoning (the big three accidental causes), almost all of the biggest risks are non-communicable disease risks that are reduced by getting out and getting moving.

    Cheers,

    Bill S.

    #1985186
    Ryan Bressler
    BPL Member

    @ryanbressler

    On a serious note, exercise (sweat) induced calcium loss is a long term effect not many are aware of. Supplements aren't a bad idea.

    My mom used to hike a ton but had to stop backpacking after her bones became weak and she broke an arm hitting a tenis ball. Obviously an anecdotal story that doesn't show a link but sweating has been documented to increase calcium loss and there are few times I sweat as much as hiking up mountain passes.

    #1985498
    Kevin Burton
    BPL Member

    @burtonator

    Locale: norcal

    They REALLY need a better way to prevent stupid people from killing themselves at Vernal Falls …

    I think a more SIGNIFICANT call to action like "if you cross this line you're going to die"

    #1985500
    Kevin Burton
    BPL Member

    @burtonator

    Locale: norcal

    As an aside, regular blood tests are a good idea for anyone interested in fitness.

    I have to go back. I get tests ever 3-6 months.

    I've found out LOTS about myself this way.

    – I'm prone to anemia
    – I have postural orthostatic tachychardia syndrom
    – prone to low blood pressure

    You can run a complete blood count. Testosterone levels. Iron, etc.

    If you're female, a vegetarian, don't eat red meat often, or do a lot of jogging – you need to pay attention to anemia and your complete blood count.

    … a few other things.

    Do you know your resting heart rate? This is a GOOD measure of how much stress your body is under and how much recovery you need. Professional athletes have heart rate monitors they sue to detect their heart rate variability to determine if they need to rest.

    I've used this do determine if I am having issues with altitude and how over taxed I am (vs if I'm just being a wimp).

    You MAY have some minor health issues that are holding you back. By paying attention and talking to your doctor often you can find them.

    #1985527
    Nick Gatel
    BPL Member

    @ngatel

    Locale: Southern California

    If one hikes based on their skill and experience (each trip matched to these), there is almost no risk.

    Of course there is the chance of an accident — especially if you are in over your head — which skilled and experienced hikers don't do.

    So…

    We can sit at home and worry about the risks — akin to sitting at home and waiting to die; or we can get out into the wilderness and live our lives.

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