For the old men only..

[JayS]

I seem to need to water the trees LESS when hammocking, all else being the same. figure it's less compression of the organs because of more even support rather than pressure points like in a bed. But... add cold and it seems I have to go a little more if either
1) I am physically chilled or
2) I am finally all snugged up with no drafts after a bunch of fiddling (just kiddin' but it does seem that way).
I have found the "double watering" (see Doctari, post #9) works sometimes and sometimes not.

I have tried a pee bottle in the hammock and found it doable but challenging enough that I could have just gotten up in the same amount of time, although I would have gotten colder. Have thought about the hammock hose but have not tried it yet. Then again, I didn't think about the way birdofprey designed it. Boy, would it be nice not to have to get out from under the covers on a below freezing night.

[Hooch]

Hooch, doesnt seem to matter if its summer or winter for me.

I'd probably attribute it to cold diuresis then. Your bladder fills and it takes energy/calories to keep that urine warm. Your bladder recognizes this and tells you to empty it so it can warm back up easily and quickly. Pretty much what Pan said.

[Youngblood]

Hi
I am the same as you and most guys in the cold I think.
I found this online after a quick google and as you know EVERYTHING you read on the net is true

Quote:
This is absolutely true; you do pee more in the cold!

The reason is that in order to minimise heat loss during cold exposure the body restricts the flow of blood to the skin and superficial tissues. This is called peripheral vasoconstriction. The result is that blood is shunted to the body core, the volume of blood circulating in the core is higher, and mean arterial blood pressure is higher.

Blood volume, and hence blood pressure, are regulated by the kidney, which either reabsorbs or sheds water from the body according to how well hydrated we are.

So when you are exposed to the cold and your blood pressure rises, the kidney interprets this as due to an excess circulating volume, and sets about losing salt and water in order bring down the blood volume and hence blood pressure. As a result you produce more urine, just as you observed.

Medically this is referred to as "cold diuresis" and it can be a problem for elderly people because, along with the water, some of the blood's natural anticoagulants (including a substance called protein C) are shed by the kidney. This has the effect of making the blood more sticky and prone to clot, so heart attack risks increase in the winter time. This probably plays a small but significant role in the annual "excess mortality" (in other words a blip in the death rate where more people die than expected) associated with winter. In the UK the winter excess mortality is about 30,000 deaths. 12,000 of these are due to the flu.
__________________

I found that to be very true for me while and since I finished my AT thru hike. I don't know if it was that way before or something my body got acclimated to, but I suspect it was the later. The amount of fluids my body wants to maintain is a function of the temperature gradient. In warming weather I urinate noticeably less than normal and in cooling weather I urinate noticeable more. I make every effort to adjust how much I drink to stay hydrated and pay attention to the color of my urine during the day. My simplified understanding is that your body adjusts the amount of fluids so that it has more available during hot weather for sweating/evaporative cooling and less during cold weather so it doesn't have to provide the energy necessary to heat it.

It can be frustrating in certain cases as I might not urinate much at all during the day while I urinate much more frequently at night in spite of drinking more fluids early in the day and purposely less during the afternoon and evening. But, when the temperature is cooling during the day, I have to urinate very frequently during the day and may not have to during the night... it all depends on several factors, not just the temperature gradient but the temperature gradient(s) is a big one for me. The best solution for me has been a pee bottle and dumping it from my hammock. That lessens the problem immensely.

Another factor for those of us with enlarged prostrate symptoms, is the chemicals we ingest. Not only the chemicals we purposely ingest in the forms of prescription meds or herbs, but in the food and drinks we ingest. There seems to be some items that make the symptoms worse or less.

[Ramblinrev]

Another factor that can play into this whole thing is blood sugar levels. As blood sugar levels rise the body attempts to excrete excess sugar through urine. Blood sugar is directly affected by carbohydrate intake. Under normal healthy situations the body controls the blood sugar through normal means of insulin production and exercise stress. However backpacking is not a normal situation. Most backpackers chow down on carbs to an extent that more sedentary people don't. If you want to try a little experiment to see if it makes a difference let me suggest the following:

Cut well back on the carb content of the evening meal particularly if you eat it closer than 4 hours before going to bed. Obviously you need additional carbs during the day to sustain the exertion of hiking. But if the blood sugar levels rise wildly over night, due to high carb intake coupled with lower exertion levels, you could end up in a situation where the body attempts to purge sugar through excretion. Load up on carbs in the morning meal, sustain them throughout the day but don't load up on carbs at night.

[Dale]

At home I'm taking the trip 3 to 4 times per night. Out in the bush, I'm talking mostly canoe trips, I have found that if I reduce the fluid intake after supper and I make sure I am warm in the hammock, I'm down to 0 to 1 trip per night. It does take a lot of willpower to forgo the nice cuppa while stargazing though and if there's a nice cold one to be enjoyed, forget about it. So there is a tradeoff.

Dale

[Coffee]

I found that to be very true for me while and since I finished my AT thru hike. I don't know if it was that way before or something my body got acclimated to, but I suspect it was the later. The amount of fluids my body wants to maintain is a function of the temperature gradient. In warming weather I urinate noticeably less than normal and in cooling weather I urinate noticeable more. I make every effort to adjust how much I drink to stay hydrated and pay attention to the color of my urine during the day. My simplified understanding is that your body adjusts the amount of fluids so that it has more available during hot weather for sweating/evaporative cooling and less during cold weather so it doesn't have to provide the energy necessary to heat it.

It can be frustrating in certain cases as I might not urinate much at all during the day while I urinate much more frequently at night in spite of drinking more fluids early in the day and purposely less during the afternoon and evening. But, when the temperature is cooling during the day, I have to urinate very frequently during the day and may not have to during the night... it all depends on several factors, not just the temperature gradient but the temperature gradient(s) is a big one for me. The best solution for me has been a pee bottle and dumping it from my hammock. That lessens the problem immensely.

Another factor for those of us with enlarged prostrate symptoms, is the chemicals we ingest. Not only the chemicals we purposely ingest in the forms of prescription meds or herbs, but in the food and drinks we ingest. There seems to be some items that make the symptoms worse or less.

It's interesting you bring up post AT health differences. I'm not an old guy yet, but I do tend to water the leaves a lot. I have noticed some physical differences now vs pre-hike. Mainly with being cold. I'm way colder most of the time now. I do deal with the hot weather better.

But I feel like my body needs more water than before, causing more watering breaks.

Maybe not on topic, but interesting to note.

[BillyBob58]

................
Another factor for those of us with enlarged prostrate symptoms, is the chemicals we ingest. Not only the chemicals we purposely ingest in the forms of prescription meds or herbs, but in the food and drinks we ingest. There seems to be some items that make the symptoms worse or less.

In addition to the enlarged prostate issue, inflammation of same can be a concurrent or separate problem. And a pre-existing problem in addition to however cold temps effect frequency of urination.

Take this info FWIW and as personal opinion, not as medical advice. IOW, consult your physician! Zinc/copper supplements - 50-100 mg zinc/2 mg copper initially, less long term- (don't go crazy and start mega-dosing!) can make an impressive difference in various symptoms, including the number of times getting up at night. Saw Palmetto is pretty well established as quite beneficial. Pygeum and Nettle Root are about equally helpful, and probably ( IMO ) preferred for very long term use. These will probably not help overnight, but probably will help pretty quickly.

Other than that, I tend to agree with Pan and some others: If you are cold, you are probably going to be up a lot at night. My all time record for number of times having to get up to take a leak was also my coldest night ever( EDIT: even though I was a young fellow then!). Not record cold in actual temps( only 24*F), but in cold body temp. Shivering much of the night was also present.

[canoebie]

In addition to the enlarged prostate issue, inflammation of same can be a concurrent or separate problem. And a pre-existing problem in addition to however cold temps effect frequency of urination.

Take this info FWIW and as personal opinion, not as medical advice. IOW, consult your physician! Zinc/copper supplements - 50-100 mg zinc/2 mg copper initially, less long term- (don't go crazy and start mega-dosing!) can make an impressive difference in various symptoms, including the number of times getting up at night. Saw Palmetto is pretty well established as quite beneficial. Pygeum and Nettle Root are about equally helpful, and probably ( IMO ) preferred for very long term use. These will probably not help overnight, but probably will help pretty quickly.

Other than that, I tend to agree with Pan and some others: If you are cold, you are probably going to be up a lot at night. My all time record for number of times having to get up to take a leak was also my coldest night ever. Not in actual temps( only 24*F), but in cold body temp. Shivering much of the night was also present.

I would agree with this. I take a supplement specifically to promote prostate health, and I notice a difference. Less frequent, more complete relief. Billy Crystal said that peeing when you get old is a lot like Morse code. dot, dot, dash, dash, dot, dot. etc. I chuckled when I heard this. No dots and dashes for me anymore. I ususally get up once or twice in the night. I am 56.

[moski]

Interesting tread !
I never have to water the the grass at home at night.
Occasionally when hanging.

But i noticed (as said above) when i'm in a cold environment and are a bit chilled i have to go MUCH more, Even at daytime.

And i started noticing that at my twenties.
So i can easily believe gunn parker's post.

This is absolutely true; you do pee more in the cold!

The reason is that in order to minimise heat loss during cold exposure the body restricts the flow of blood to the skin and superficial tissues. This is called peripheral vasoconstriction. The result is that blood is shunted to the body core, the volume of blood circulating in the core is higher, and mean arterial blood pressure is higher.

Blood volume, and hence blood pressure, are regulated by the kidney, which either reabsorbs or sheds water from the body according to how well hydrated we are.

So when you are exposed to the cold and your blood pressure rises, the kidney interprets this as due to an excess circulating volume, and sets about losing salt and water in order bring down the blood volume and hence blood pressure. As a result you produce more urine, just as you observed.

Medically this is referred to as "cold diuresis" and it can be a problem for elderly people because, along with the water, some of the blood's natural anticoagulants (including a substance called protein C) are shed by the kidney. This has the effect of making the blood more sticky and prone to clot, so heart attack risks increase in the winter time. This probably plays a small but significant role in the annual "excess mortality" (in other words a blip in the death rate where more people die than expected) associated with winter. In the UK the winter excess mortality is about 30,000 deaths. 12,000 of these are due to the flu.

[Peter_pan]

I would agree with this. I take a supplement specifically to promote prostate health, and I notice a difference. Less frequent, more complete relief. Billy Crystal said that peeing when you get old is a lot like Morse code. dot, dot, dash, dash, dot, dot. etc. I chuckled when I heard this. No dots and dashes for me anymore. I ususally get up once or twice in the night. I am 56.

FWIW.... Alternatively, get rid of the prostate and you'll whizz like a teenager again...

Pan