International Journal of Research and Innovation in Applied Science (IJRIAS) |Volume VII, Issue X, October 2022|ISSN 2454-6194
Hydration and Urine Quality in Workers Exposed to Heat Stress (Study on Ceramic Production Workers)
Ulfa Nurullita*, Rama Dwika Pradhipta
Faculty of Public Health, University of Muhammadiyah Semarang, Indonesia.
*Corresponding Author
Abstract: Workers in the ceramic industry were exposed to high heat stress every day, that can caused dehydration. Dehydration can be identified by urine color, urine pH, and urine specific gravity (USG). It is also necessary to know urine quality to indicate the health condition of workers, including by turbidity, presence of protein, epithelium, bacteria, and leucosit. This research is analytic and descriptive, with a cross-sectional. The population and sample are all workers in the ceramic industry center in Klampok Village, Banjarnegara Regency, Central Java, are 55 workers. The variables studied were heat stress, amount of drinking water consumption, dehydration status, and urine quality. Heat stress is measured using a heat stress meter, the amount of drinking water consumption is identified through interviews, dehydration status is measured through urine examination taken after work and analyzed in the Banjarnegara District Health Office laboratory, including color (with standard urine color indicator), pH (with digital pH), and the USG (with a refractometer). The quality of urine is seen from the turbidity, the presence of protein, epithelium, bacteria, and leucocyte levels that analyzed in the laboratory. Based on the urine pH no worker is dehydrated. However, based on the urine colour, 60% of the workers were dehydrated, and based on the USG, 76.4% of the workers were dehydrateded. The relationship between the amount of water consumption based on urine color, p value = 0,013, and based on USG p value= 0,863. 21,8% urine were cloudy, 91% positive protein, 91% positive leucosite, 96,4% normal epithel, 100% positive contains bacteria. There is a relationship between the amount of drinking water consumption with dehidration status based on urine color.
Key words: dehydration, heat stress, water consumption.
I. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Climate change is driving an increase in heat-exposed workers.[1] People who are exposed to heat and humidity globally could increase from 275 million now to 1.22 billion annually when warming increases by about 3°C.[2] The hot climate is the dominant work environment factor in Indonesia, considering Indonesia’s position in the tropics with high average air temperatures. Exposure to heat in workers can have direct consequences on health and performance of workers. Working under high heat stress, workers must reduce work intensity and rest longer to prevent an increase in internal body temperature, which if too high can cause dehydration, mental fatigue, impaired decision-making, physical exhaustion, heat stroke, and fainting.[3], [4], [5], [6], [7]. Dehydration is the loss of fluids or ions in the human body where more water comes out or undergoes excretion compared to the intake or consumption of fluids in the body.[8], [9].