The Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast

E138: Heat Safety with Lexi Engelbart — Hydration, TACO Method, and Cooling PPE

• Kerry Reller

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Welcome to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast with Dr. Kerry Reller! This week, I am joined by Lexi Engelbart, Product Development Manager at Ergodyne, specializing in heat stress prevention and PPE innovation.

In this episode, we dive into heat safety, exploring why heat is the #1 weather-related killer, common warning signs of heat illness, and the critical “30-minute window” to act. Lexi shares practical prevention tips, the importance of hydration, OSHA’s “water, rest, shade” guideline, and innovative PPE solutions—from UPF clothing and cooling gear to the TACO method for emergencies.

Whether you’re working in construction, coaching on the sidelines, or just braving Tampa Bay’s summer, you’ll learn life-saving strategies to stay cool, safe, and healthy.
00:28 – Introduction & guest welcome
01:47 – What Ergodyne does and Lexi’s role in safety innovation
02:17 – Why heat safety awareness matters
05:16 – Hydration & cooling strategies for athletes and workers
08:08 – Warning signs of heat-related illness
11:43 – Emergency response & the TACO cooling method
13:31 – The mission of Project Heat & culture change
16:32 – PPE solutions: sun protection, fabrics, and cooling vests
20:58 – Phase-change cooling explained
21:28 – Simple prevention tips for everyday life
23:33 – Electrolytes, cramps, and hydration packets
26:29 – Where to find Ergodyne products & closing thoughts

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Kerry:

Hi everybody. Welcome back to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Kerry Reller, and today we have Lexi Engelbart from Ergodyne here with us today. Thank you so much for joining us.

Lexi:

Thank you so much for having me.

Kerry:

Yeah, I am really excited to talk to you because I don't think I've ever had anybody like you on the podcast, so this is gonna be great. So why don't you tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do.

Lexi:

Absolutely. So I am a product development manager at Ergodyne. There are a team of us we're each kind of tasked with mitigating a risk. So we work in industrial safety so construction workers, road workers manufacturing. So we have a full extensive personal protective equipment line. Basically anything from your hard hat, eye protection, hand protection, and then what my specialty is today is mitigating heat stress. So I get with people like yourselves, I talk with end users, frontline workers, kind of discovering. What are the issues you're facing on the job? And then what are some of the solutions that we can develop maybe in tandem together? Nobody knows what they need better than the actual frontline worker, so that's kind of our goal at Ergodyne is to help mitigate risks, be proactive, and in some cases what can we do in reactive scenarios as well.

Kerry:

Yeah. Very, very cool. Think that for me and maybe some of our listeners, when we think of, you know, PPE and personal protective equipment, mostly for me, I'm thinking, you know what, the COVID obviously

Lexi:

Respirators.

Kerry:

yeah. Yeah. But it, it, like you said, it's really important for other types of professions who, you know, need specialized things to help protect them from their jobs. So that's, that's really important. You mentioned I guess focusing specifically with heat awareness. So tell me why are you working to raise awareness for heat safety?

Lexi:

So it is actually the number one weather related killer, so it kills more people than floods, hurricanes, and tornadoes combined. And you know, a lot of us here in the US we have ac, we have all this infrastructure. Not everybody has access to that. And we did some, we did some studies, we did some research four out of five Americans have actually experienced some format of heat stress, and over a quarter of them don't know how to react in that sort of emergency. Obviously we're, we're in summer and you're, you are in the heart of it in Tampa Bay. It's summer. It's a timely reminder. Heat waves and heat warnings. We keep seeing these happen more frequently. 2024 was named the world's Warmest year on record. This year's tracking about the third. It'll be in the top five for sure. Point being the risk is not going anywhere anytime soon. So really, really what we're doing here with our project Heat is trying to get more awareness out there because Right, this isn't just an industrial safety concern. This is, you know, people going to their softball games, people going to their kids' football games. You know, if you don't know why, why your body's feeling off you're more likely to suffer from heat stress. So that's really what we're, what we're kind of doing this summer is raising awareness. It's not just on the job site, taking care of each other, and how do I recognize heat stress in myself as well?

Kerry:

I mean, a couple comments there. So one, I mean, I'm really surprised by the just statistic that. It's a number one, you know, weather related killer. And you know, in Tampa obviously we had a lot of hurricanes recently, and I know you mentioned now and in the summer being worse, but honestly post hurricane is big risk too, because people don't have power and then they don't have air conditioning and things like that. So we definitely see that come up in our area as well. And then you mentioned 2024 being the highest record. In Tampa recently, they hit a hundred and that was definitely record setting as well in our area. Luckily I was outta town for that, but and then you mentioned also about football. You know, my husband and I, we just discussing recently about how the kids were out there at like a 12 30, 1 o'clock game and with all the pads and everything, and it's just like, like that sounded brutal really,

Lexi:

Yeah, There's a lot of crossover too between like sports medicine and heat stress. So I, I do a lot of studying of athletes and that sort of thing too. Like what are some of their techniques that they use to cool their body down? Can we apply that in an industrial safety setting? So there's, there's actually a ton of crossover and it's, it just keeps getting, you know, more research, more studies. So it's really, really exciting to see that people are concerned about it and, and it's being made a big deal, which is it's time finally.

Kerry:

Yeah. Well since you brought it up, I know I went through, you know, growing up playing soccer in this area and it was super high and we had certain ways to, you know, cool down. But what, what kind of things do you kind of recommend for those situations?

Lexi:

Yeah. So the number one thing we will always recommend is staying hydrated. Once your body hits a deficit of being dehydrated, you know it's already too late at that point. So we say drink water at night. Maybe skip the energy drink in the morning. Can we swap it out for a flavored water? You know, everybody has their vice mine's coffee. I'm not giving that up anytime soon, but I just need to, you know, adjust my lifestyle accordingly. So a lot of times what we'll say is, you know, do some research on your own. There's certain medications that can exacerbate heat stress, so people with heart conditions, diabetes. You know, the area that we try to cool down the quickest in a heat stress emergency, or in a proactive scenario would be our core. So where all of those vital organs are, right? We have 30 minutes. If somebody goes down from heat, stroke loses consciousness, we have 30 minutes to act while paramedics are on their way. There's a lot of different solutions, techniques. Hydration is gonna be, you know, the thing we promote the most. And as a PPE company. We want PPE to be the last line of defense. We want employers to be looking at are there engineering controls that we can be pulling? So can we protect people from the hazard administrative controls? Can we work earlier in the day when it's cooler or later in the day, shifting work schedules, that sort of thing. And then PPE, again, it's the last line of defense because it is personal it requires wearing it, knowing how it works and that sort of thing. So, you know, you are in Tampa Bay, high humidity, high temperatures. We have certain solutions that'll work really great in those conditions. And we have other solutions that are, you know, gonna be better suited for the dry phoenix area or something along those lines. So, you know, a lot of people, unless you're brushing elbows with safety professionals or manufacturers who are creating this type of gear. A lot of people don't even know it exists. So it's really, really exciting. We we're starting to see it crossover from industrial safety into the more the weekend the weekend warrior. So that's, that's really, really exciting. I would say number one though, hydration, hydration, hydration and OSHA's been prescribing water, rest, and shade for 20 years. Those are really easy to remember too. Get as much water as you can when you are taking a rest. Try to do it in the shade if possible.'cause rest breaks are proven ineffective if you aren't actually cooling your body down during the rest break. So that's really what we promote. And then, you know, we have a ton of PPE solutions, but again, we try to lead with the training, the awareness, what can we adjust at the highest level before we start taking it to the individual.

Kerry:

I like that. And that's a really good thing to bring up the awareness. Right. So what are some of the common heat, exhaustion, warning signs that people should be looking out for?

Lexi:

Yeah. So the biggest thing is gonna be there's four main, HRIs heat related illnesses. So heat rash, kind of how it sounds. Your sweat ducks get clogged, you'll start to get blisters on your skin. Usually when that happens, it's because sweat is sitting on your skin. Maybe you're in a super humid environment. There's not airflow, so that sweat isn't getting off the body. So that's, that's a really great thing to look for those blisters. Another kind of on the opposite spectrum, if somebody's sweating, sweating, sweating, and then all of a sudden they're not sweating anymore that is a great sign as well. That's probably creeping into heat exhaustion or close to heat stroke. We lose some cognitive abilities once heat stress starts to affect us. So unfortunately, you know, we have numbers that get reported on incidents and fatalities from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. We know that these are super under-reported. What tends to happen is, okay, I start to feel sick at work from heat stress. I'm a little dizzy, I'm a little nauseous, but I'm gonna go home and figure it out at home. While I'm on my way home I faint, I crash my car, it gets chalked up to, you know, a hit a struck by or something along those lines, or you get all the way home have a cardiac arrest, it gets chalked up to a heart attack. So we know that these numbers that are reported are super, super low. And so that's, that's really again, why we're trying to hit this awareness and training. You know, looking out for your friends and your coworkers too. Just if somebody, you know, the example I always use is, you know, here's my water bottle. If I'm trying to drink my water like this. Something's, something's not right here. So people start using their tools in the wrong way, or they start making decisions that don't really make sense. We start losing cognitive function quickly. And if we go all the way into heat, stroke, unconsciousness, dizziness, fainting we have 30 minute, a 30 minute window to try to cool that body down. So what we always say is, step one, get those paramedics on the way. Number two, can we move them to a air conditioned, climate controlled room, can we put ice packs or phase change on their body? You know, again, hitting those core areas anywhere that you would take a pulse is a really great place to apply cooling PPE as well. And one method we've kind of been promoting,'cause we have a lot of people that work in super remote job sites. The trailer is a couple of miles away. They can't get back to an air condition. You know, their car is parked way over here. So what do we do in this remote emergency? what we've kind of been talking about, and again, this is used in sports medicine, is the taco method, tarp assisted cooling oscillation, so delicious to eat, and a great little acronym to remember for how to cool somebody down in an emergency. So essentially it is a, you know, simulated ice bath. So you lay a person down in tarp. Hopefully you have your, your lunch cooler or a bag of ice or water or something along those lines. Douse the person and just try to keep that cold water moving all over their body. Keep it oscillating. Again, we're trying to cool that core area down. And we would say do that until paramedics arrive. So there's, there's definitely, you know, a lot of people that, are in these really, really remote areas that not all of these options are feasible. They don't have power, they don't have a fridge freezer, that sort of thing. So what can we do in those scenarios to keep people ready for these unfortunate emergencies?

Kerry:

So what if they like don't have a tarp or anything, or any examples of things that they could use instead?

Lexi:

So a lot of people will have like the portable, like pop-up shelters. Sometimes. Yep. Sometimes those tents will have like walls on them. Tear a wall off the tent. Basically anything, if you can just try to contain somebody in it. If you don't have a tarp, you know, applying ice strategically, try to remove some of the layers, try to get them out of the sun. Anytime we can get people out of direct sun, that is gonna be a recommendation as well. It's, you know, usually a few degrees cooler in the shade. So, yeah, it's, it's hard because quite frankly, not everybody's gonna have every supply necessary. And that's what I think is, is super important with OSHA's proposed rule that they're coming out with. It'll have a lot of recommendations for what people should do proactively and to have a medical emergency plan as well.

Kerry:

So you mentioned 30 minutes, right? As like what kind of that timeframe is? When I think of other types of stroke, I think of like a 90 minute window. To get into the hospital to see if they can use like something called TPA. What is the risk of the, or what's gonna happen like in 30 minutes if they're not getting starting to be cooled?

Lexi:

Yeah, we, we've researched and it's cellular damage, brain damage. Again, those organs can start to fail. So that's, that's what we always prescribe. You know, we're gonna air probably on the side of a shortened window just to try to get people to act as quickly as possible. But obviously you are, you are a doctor, so I totally trust your opinion. So I, I'd love to talk to you a little bit more about that, probably on another, on another session, but would love your insight on that as well.

Kerry:

Yeah. So what what kind of impact do you hope to make with Project Heat?

Lexi:

So kind of, kind of what I've said making sure people understand this is a real issue. Sometimes there is the mantra of pull your bootstraps up and we gotta work anyway, so we just gotta keep going. There's a lot of concerns about productivity and you know, building infrastructure and how do we, if I have to take a rest, break every hour, how is that feasible for me as an employer to in like actually get that into our program? safety is really. It can be very boring to some people. But that's why we've kind of tried to take this, you know, a little bit of a sense of humor. Tacos. Tacos are super easy to remember. You know, a lot of times it's just. Creating it as part of the culture. It is a risk and it is a serious issue. And you know, people joke with me'cause I, I'm based out of Minnesota, so I did training last week for heat stress awareness. And they're like, well we're in Minnesota. We have the opposite. I said, typically, yes, we more frequently have to deal with cold stress. That's exactly why we're not prepared when we do have heat stress here because we're not used to it. Acclimatization is a big thing we talk about too. So my body being used to the environment that I'm living in, working in that sort of thing. So again, I'm, I'm in Minnesota if I came down to Tampa Bay next week and tried to work. I would absolutely not make it through a, a shift. So making sure people, you know, are giving their bodies some grace, some time. Acclimatization will be a requirement, likely from OSHA with their federal proposed rule. So again, we have a lot of people that. Migrant workers, returning workers, they're new to construction, that sort of thing. Their bodies are not used to it. And unfortunately the incidents and fatalities we tend to see be recorded they happen within the first two weeks of work. Those are when they happen the most frequently. So again, just really trying to get it as part of the culture, you know we want prevention versus reactive. And it really doesn't have to be intimidating.'cause again, it's not just a work site issue, it's not just a summer issue either. We have heat stress indoors as well. So people who work at bakeries, foundries, they're working indoors all year long and they're working around extremely hot ovens or machines. So. The thing that I've been really excited about too is we're taking heat stress out of the outdoor context and moving it indoors because that is just as important and isn't often highlighted as much.

Kerry:

Yeah, I was gonna say I hadn't really thought of that either. I mean, I watching some construction workers outside my window and obviously they start very early, but I was trying to get a glimpse of what they're wearing. So what sort of PPE do you know you guys have that is recommended for these patients who are, or people who are out in the heat all the time?

Lexi:

Yeah. So we definitely, you know, a lot of them are required to wear PPE already, so a hard hat. The lime vest or lime shirts. We can actually use some of those requirements. And we've created solutions that actually conform to those requirements as well. So if you're wearing a hard hat or a safety helmet, you have probably the glare of the sun beating down on you on your neck as well. So we always, always, always talk about sun protection. So we also have a sunscreen line that we do at Ergodyne as well. So we always say skin, skin protection is really, really important. Not everybody likes sunscreen. Not everybody wants to wear sunscreen. So can we start choosing UPF rated materials? So ultraviolet protective factor that's specific to textiles. SPF is sun protective factor, so specific to sunscreen. So a lot of places you'll see people kind of fully covered up. And a lot of people go, well, why wouldn't you wear short sleeves? We're trying to choose performance fabrics and materials that are really, really good at soaking up moisture. So we use performance fabrics that are maybe hydrophobic. They don't like water, so as soon as that sweat gets in the material, it'll evaporate. Our body's natural way of cooling itself down is sweating. So anytime we can work to help our body get that sweat off the body faster, it's going to continue to cool our body down because as that moisture evaporates, it takes heat from the surrounding area, and that's how it cools our body down. So anytime you can have some sun protection so we do like the brim shades that go over your hard hat, give you a little bit of that brim focus, add a shade to the back. We do, you know, vests and shirts that are super lightweight. Again, using those performance materials, helping. Basically escalate and elevate our body's natural way of cooling itself down. So anytime we can be choosing, you know, these lighter materials, these lighter fabrics that are gonna help work with us, that's always gonna be a great solution in pretty much any environment. There are some slightly more technical options as well. So one that I recommend a lot it works really great indoors. High humidity. There's no airflow. Maybe I'm in a tight, confined space. That would be phase change. So a lot of people have maybe seen this in the form of an ice pack or something along those lines. They often get conflated to being ice. It actually is a formula specifically created to maintain a certain temperature. So in our line, for instance, we have our set up 64 degrees. So about 30 degrees below the body temperature, so it's gonna slowly pull the heat from our body and provide a prolonged cooling period. This is really, really great for people who have to maybe wear an outer layer. So they have to wear coveralls or Tyvek or painting suits or this, that and the other. Anything that maybe is help preventing airflow from getting in or that sort of thing. This one phase change, I say it's agnostic of all environments. Some of our cooling

Kerry:

What is it? Is it a a shirt or what do you mean?

Lexi:

actually, let me grab, I have a, I have one sitting right here.

Kerry:

Yeah.

Lexi:

So this is one of our phase change packs. This is like truly a pack format. We also have ones that come in a vest, so you would just slide that over your uniform over a t-shirt, that sort of thing. A lot of people, when they touch it or feel it, they're like, well, it should be wearing an ice cube. That can be a shock to the system as well. So what this does is, again, it takes that body temperature slowly absorbs the radiant heat and then melts over time so 30 degrees below the body temperature. Again, it's not gonna feel freezing cold. But it provides just that little extra level of, taking that heat from the core and dispersing it. So that's a really great option. I will say a lot of these other cooling options, we have utilized evaporative cooling, so. If you have high levels of humidity or low levels of airflow, some of those are a little bit harder to perform. You might have to get them other options. It's really kind of about understanding your environment and then which technology is best suited for that environment.

Kerry:

Yeah, it was very cool. I wasn't expecting to get to see the um, I don't know what to call it device or thing.

Lexi:

some, some, some product. Yeah.

Kerry:

Yeah. That's fantastic. So obviously you have a very important message that to be, you know, relayed here and I think it's very important with Tampa Bay area too. So, I mean, you might have, I know you've already kind of said it, but what's one simple prevention tip that people can use today before heading out for a run, a job site, or, you know, someone's soccer game or something like that?

Lexi:

Definitely. So drink as much water as possible, you know, throughout your entire day. Again, don't just drink it right before you're about to go for the run. Keep that body hydrated. You know, and. Really, it's about taking action, I would say just so people have the understanding so that they can react when they see somebody else that they know go down from this you know, and it doesn't, it doesn't have to be intimidating. Really what we're hoping to do with our campaign is equipping people with the confidence that they know. What maybe is happening and heat stress is such a personal thing. It's very, very different than a lot of the other risks that we try to mitigate. So, you know, a helmet is a helmet. It's gonna be put on the same. You're protecting from objects dropping on your head. Heat stress. I may be on different medication. Maybe I drank last night, maybe I'm not hydrated enough. There's just so many different factors that are super personal with heat stress. I think that's why it's lagged a little bit with some of the compliance and regulatory stuff. It's really hard to make an overarching statement of, you know, what works for me versus what works for you. But there are those tried and true methods. The water, rest and shade, really just encouraging. If you feel off, nobody knows your body better than yourself. So take some time to really see what your body is feeling. Again, if it's, if it's not feeling good, stop, take a break. Have someone you trust that can monitor your symptoms and signs and just try to get into a cool area if possible. Again, just anytime we can get out of the direct sun, keep hydrating. That's really, that's really what we're trying to get the message across with people.

Kerry:

One thing we didn't talk about was like heat related cramps. And I mean, we, we were talking about hydration and we shouldn't, you know, just, or not mention, you know, the importance of electrolyte repletion too. So I don't know, what do you think about all these new hydration packets and things like that?

Lexi:

Boy, there's a huge market for them now. It's, it's crazy how many options exist. I, I do get asked every now and again, like. Should we be doing electrolytes? Should we be doing water again? It depends. There's not a perfect answer. If you are getting a balanced diet and you are getting, you know, those electrolytes through your food maybe electrolyte replenishment isn't as much of a need. But some people don't. You know, some people have different lifestyles and the food that they eat doesn't replenish all those electrolytes. What I see on job sites a lot is pickles freeze pops, a lot of these things that are cold snacky things anyway, so encourages people to actually take a break and, you know, get some electrolyte replenishment. I will say I'm not an expert in electrolytes, but there are a million of them now. And it seems like there's something for everybody.

Kerry:

Yeah, I would say personally I had a lot of cramping after, like long races and things like that, especially when I was, you know, breastfeeding my kids. And it was really important obviously to stop and then replenish with electrolytes and it, it is interesting also not just maybe someone who's breastfeeding, but other people who are at more at risk for these heat stroke. And he things, I know you mentioned medications and medical conditions, but sometimes we just don't really know who's at more risk. And it might just be the fact that they weren't prepared by hydrating themselves ahead of time and things like that. But. You know, some people are more prone to it than others, and I, I don't know why, unless taking out those other factors. So, you know, kind of like you're, like you're doing, promoting the education so they can recognize what symptoms and signs are of concern when exposed to these heat the extreme heat situations. So what you guys are doing is amazing. So I, I really appreciate it. Is there anything else you'd like to add to share with our listeners?

Lexi:

No, just kind of putting, putting it out there, regulations come and go, but we know that we don't need a regulation to look out for ourselves, look out for our family, look out for our coworkers. So. Hope, hopefully everyone can, you know, take a, take a few points away from today. And, you know, they say millennials are the most hydrated generation. I have my emotional support water bottle with me at all times. So yep, love it. So yeah, I would definitely say, you know, it's more important than you think it is. Everybody talks about the body being made of, you know, a majority of water. It is true, and if we are not replenishing that and replacing it our body's gonna let us know.

Kerry:

I, yeah, I truly believe that as well. I would, I would share that I don't really leave my house until I've drank 32 ounces of water, typically'cause I know I'm not gonna get it in, you know, necessarily throughout the day, depending upon what I'm doing so that's like minimum, you know. But yeah. So where can people find you and your company if they want to find your products or, follow you or anything?

Lexi:

Absolutely. So you can go to our website for sure, ergodyne.com. If you want to look at heat stress, specifically ergodyne.com/heat-stress you know, we talk about our technology the risks, what is OSHA talking about, and then, you know, a lot of people we're finding that it goes from Workday to the weekend. So what people are using on the job sometimes walks off the job site and they are using it at home mowing their lawn, doing landscaping. There's a lot of stuff that actually applies not just from an industrial perspective, but that can be used at home. So I am definitely the neighborhood dork that is always wearing my stuff. Everyone in the neighborhood now knows. They're like, oh yeah. Lexi's testing out more cooling product. So that is something I will say we do extremely a ton too, is we are out there testing this stuff every day. So definitely ergodyne.com we, we sell through distribution. So a lot of safety professionals wrote, recognize the name Grainger, Fastenal a lot of those types of accounts too. So we are out there. We're on Amazon as well, and you can buy directly from our website too.

Kerry:

Very cool. Yeah. Thank you for sharing all of that. And I would say I totally agree and you got a nice job perk of being able to try everything out, so that's pretty cool. But my husband, when he does the mowing of the lawn and all that stuff, he gets the full gear and the sweat wicking equipment. So it's, it's good he also is practicing that. But yeah, thank you so much for coming on the podcast and sharing everything you know about heat and illness and your company and it's been great. Thank you.

Lexi:

Thank you so much for having me. It's been wonderful.

Kerry:

Yeah, we'll put all the information in the show notes and share it with our listeners and you know, everybody, stay in, stay tuned for next week's episode.

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Dr. Kerry Reller

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