Drink Too Much In Las Vegas? There’s A Spa For You

by Sean McLachlan on

It’s easy to drink too much in Las Vegas. Hell, they want you to drink too much. As Hunter S. Thompson observed in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, “In this town they love a drunk. Fresh meat.”

Not only do bosomy waitresses offer free drinks to gullible dupes who don’t understand statistics classy high rollers, but pretty much all the bars and restaurants have cheap booze.

It makes for a great evening, but the morning after can be hell. That’s when REVIV–The Hydration Medspa comes to the rescue. Their slogan is, “What life takes out of you REVIV gives right back.” Founded by four emergency room physicians and staffed by registered nurses and paramedics, this spa specializes in rehydrating people who have had a bit too much fun in the sun.

Once you stagger through their doors, REVIV staff will sit you down in a plush leather message chair and offer you one of a number of IV treatments to get fluid, vitamins, and minerals straight into your system.

If you’re simply dehydrated, a liter of saline solution and electrolytes (aka the HydraMax Hydration Infusion) may be just the thing for you. More serious cases might opt for the MegaBoost Wellness Infusion, where the patient also gets vitamins, antioxidants, and and “immunity boost”. If your system is making you look and feel like the Toxic Avenger, go for the UltraVive Recovery Infusion, which adds B12, anti-nausea and anti-inflammatory medicines into the mix. These IV injections start at $99. For something a little less radical you can set the QuickFix oral treatment for $49.

Hmm, maybe that slogan should be, “What Vegas takes out of you REVIV takes a little more.”

If you find yourself hungover somewhere other than Vegas, or if you simply don’t want to fork over large sums of money to pay for your mistakes, you can either try to absorb the toxins at a buffet or check out these hangover cures from around the world.

Happy drinking!

[Via The Los Angeles Times]

Avoiding Altitude Woes: What To Bring On Your Next Ski Trip

by Laurel Miller on

There are few things that bum out a ski trip more than altitude issues. Even if your symptoms are just in the form of Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) – headache, fatigue, dizziness, insomnia or nausea – it’s often enough to make you wish you’d stayed at home.

I live in Colorado, and have resided in a couple of high-altitude ski towns in the past. Since our ski season just kicked off, for the purposes of this post I’m only focusing on AMS, rather than more serious forms of altitude sickness.

Predisposition to AMS is subjective. Age, physiology, genetics, and physical fitness may or may not play a role. If, however, you’ve got congestive heart failure, a nice alpine getaway may not be the best thing. Conversely, if you’re not in the habit of drinking lots of water at elevation, you’re going to feel like hell, regardless of how fit you are.

The higher the elevation, the harder your body has to work, because air pressure is lower (i.e. there’s less oxygen, which is also why it’s dehydrating). The body responds by producing more red blood cells to increase circulation. The short answer is, high elevations stress the body.

To ensure your next visit to the mountains is free of altitude-related woes, follow these tips:

  • Hydrate – with water, not soda or other sugary beverages – then hydrate some more. Amounts vary depending upon your gender, activity level and weight; 2.5 liters a day is considered a rough daily estimate necessary for good health at sea level. If you’re seriously shredding the pow, then a sports drink with electrolytes at day’s end is also a good idea.
  • If you have health concerns, acclimate slowly, if possible. Try to spend a night at a lower elevation before heading to your destination. Example: Fly into Denver (5,280 feet), before heading to Aspen (7,890 feet).
  • Go easy the first 48 hours, as you acclimatize.
  • Since you’re burning and expending more calories, be sure to eat small, regular meals or snacks when you’re out there tearing it up on the slopes.
  • Reduce (I know better than to say “avoid”) consumption of alcohol. At altitude, one drink has double the impact. This makes for a cheap date, but it can do a number on your head and body. Pace yourself, and drink a glass of water in between each alcoholic beverage. You’re welcome.
  • Take Diamox, ibuprofen, or aspirin, which will eliminate many of your symptoms such as headache, sluggishness, or dizziness. When I attended culinary school in Vail, one of our classrooms was located at 11,000 feet. Our first week of school, most of us were nodding off due to the altitude, and aspirin was far more effective than caffeine.
  • If you’re having trouble sleeping, you can try an OTC, or avail yourself of the local hot tub or a warm bath before bed (remember to hydrate afterward!). If you already have insomnia issues, be sure to bring your prescription or regular OTC with you.
  • Slather on the sunscreen. Not only is the sun far stronger at elevation, but its reflection off the snow can reduce your skin and eyes to cinders. Know what else a potent sunburn does? Speeds dehydration. As well as photoaging and skin cancer, but that’s a topic for another article.
  • Don’t get cocky. I live at 5360 feet, and sometimes, even I forget to follow my own advice – a certain crushing hangover in Vail two weeks ago comes to mind. Just because you live at altitude doesn’t mean you’re used to higher altitude. You’ll be better conditioned, yes. But you still need to hydrate regularly, and for the love of god, go easy on the bourbon rocks.

For more detailed information on altitude sickness, including extreme elevations, click here.

Wishing you a safe, happy snow season!

[Photo credits: skier, Flickr user laszlo-photo; tea, Flickr user Kitty Terwolbeck]

Top fifteen items to have in your travel first aid kit

by Laurel Miller on

Even if the worst travel-related malady you’ve suffered is a touch of turistas, it pays to pack at least a few first aid essentials in your luggage. If you carry nothing more than Band-Aids, moleskin, Neosporin, and Pepto-Bismol tablets, you’re set for minor emergencies that might otherwise derail a day of sightseeing.

If, however, you travel frequently/do adventure travel/spend time in developing nations, it pays to have a fully-loaded first aid kit. It’s no substitute should you get seriously ill or injured, but its contents can likely stabilize you until you’re able to get medical assistance

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on a kit, either. You can pick one up for as little as $12 at REI, and augment it as needed. The most expensive thing is filling prescriptions for antibiotics (just in case) before you leave home. Cipro is really pricey, but broad-spectrum drugs like Doxycycline are very inexpensive.

Below, my picks for travel first aid kit essentials.

1. Band-aids/gauze pads/moleskin (for blisters)

2. Surgical tape
Use it to hold dressings in place, or to strap sprains or strains. A roll of this saved my ankle after a bad fall while backpacking.

[Photo credit: Flickr user ffi]3. Sewing needle and safety pins
Sterilize and use to drain blisters, remove splinters, or make a makeshift sling.

4. Small mirror
Useful if you get something in your eye or have a facial injury. If you’re the outdoorsy type, it’s an emergency kit essential for signaling should you get lost.

5. Prescription drugs
All of your regular prescriptions, as well as antibiotics or other meds prescribed by your doctor. Be sure to keep them in their original bottles, and carry copies of your prescriptions with you.

6. OTC drugs
Imodium, Pepto-Bismol tablets, antihistimines, Pepcid, ibuprofen, eye drops. For women: Uristat and an OTC or prescription for yeast infections. Comprehensivey, these meds cover a wide range of ailments, from food-borne illness to allergies, but reserve the Imodium only for emergency situations where you must travel (it’s a potent anti-diarrheal).

7. EpiPen
This isn’t just for those with known anaphylactic allergies. When you’re traveling abroad, you never know what might trigger a reaction; it’s also possible to develop a sensitivity to things you haven’t previously had a problem with.

8. Alcohol wipes and hand sanitizer
Sterilize your hands, implements like tweezers, even wounds, if necessary. Sanitizer is something you should be in the habit of carrying when you travel, regardless.

9. Tweezers and non-safety nail scissors
Remove splinters and insect stingers, cut surgical tape or bandages; there are endless uses for these two.

10. Thermometer
If you develop a sustained fever of 100.4 or higher, it’s time to seek medical attention.

11. Electrolyte powder packets and Emergen-C
If you’re suffering severe diarrhea or vomiting, it’s absolutely essential you rehydrate and replenish electrolytes. If you have access to Gatorade, you can down that, along with bottled (if necessary) water. I use Airborne and Emergen-C after long flights and at other times I need to keep my resistance up, or if my immune system is taxed.

12. Antibiotic ointment and hydrocortisone cream
Don’t underestimate the importance of these two, especially if you’re traveling in the tropics, where things tend to fester, or you have a coral cut, serious blister, sting, bite, or rash.

13. Matches
Sterilize needles or safety pins; matches are also an essential for wilderness emergency kits. Store in old film canister or Rx bottle to keep dry. You can additionally waterproof by painting the tips with nail polish.

14. Ziploc bags
You never know when these will come in handy. You can make an impromptu ice pack, store creams and ointment in them to prevent spillage, use them as an extra layer to keep meds dry, etc..

15. Mini first aid or wilderness safety manual
If you’re traveling long-term or spending lots of time outdoors, you’ll find this useful at some point. Many first aid kits come with one.

[Photo credits: knee, Flickr user Sukianto; Pepto-Bismol, Flickr user chris.corwin;dressing, Flickr user tiny_packages]

Survival at sea a hoax?

by Brenda Yun on

Ten days later, the two men from Myanmar who Scott reported were rescued from a floating refrigerator and supposedly survived 25 days at sea with little nourishment are back in the news, but this time because authorities are calling their survival story a hoax.

The men were on a Thai fishing boat off the northern coast of Australia, and it was deemed pointless to search for other survivors, as the waters and conditions in the area are sharky and stormy at best.


The latest doubts that the men’s story is true mainly derives from the implausibility that two men could survive that long floating in such terrible conditions with little nourishment. The two men claim they are the only survivors of a Thai fishing boat accident around Christmastime that killed 18 people. They said they survived on rainwater and bird vomit. If you’re already raising your eyebrows, you should, but the real skepticism should be that one of the young men seemed to be unaffected by this long journey at sea. He showed little evidence of sun exposure. In addition, the icebox showed no signs of saltwater damage even after enduring 25 days in the rough ocean.

The men have been transferred to mainland Australia, where they continue to be questioned about the validity of their story. Authorities now believe the men used the story to escape their native home of Myanmar and seek asylum. This has the makings of a Cuban Elian Gonzalez story, doesn’t it?

Either the men are lying or the skeptics are wrong, but either way, it’s still a pretty cool survival story not to be attempted again.

[via AFP and Australia’s MSN 9 News]