This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

hi everyone
my mom has recently been diagnosed with MS,
she has a lot of trouble in the heat so I'm looking into all the different types of cooling vests, it seems as though the cold pack/gel cooling system might be the best option, but I'm having trouble finding reviews for them or finding which one is the most popular/ most liked.
can anyone recommend a certain type and/or brand of cooling vest that works well for you?
it would really help my search!
thanks so much

I found this http://www.activemsers.org/gear/reviewcoolingvest.html but couldn't tell you anything about it. I did a google search for "cooling vest".

If you can't find anything affordable, look on places that sell stuff for horses and horseback riding or sporting goods. I think I saw something in a catalog once. Although it may be the wrong time of year for that sort of thing.

Hi Angie

I suffer badly if my core temperature goes up... and I spend six weeks a year in India. So I spent a lot of time investigating the right sort of coolvest. I must admit I was picky, and I didn't want to look a right idiot so that influenced my choice. I also wanted something lowtech as I would have to use it in sometimes very simple Indian facilities - I could always find water, but not necessarily electricity - so the 'water dunk' models were preferred over the 'freezer pack' models.

I went with the Arctic Heat version. Not the cheapest, but affordable in the overall scheme of things. It is Australian designed but they have a US site. Their cricket team and olympic athletes use them, as well as a lot of autosport guys. The company is very switched on and keen to innovate and perfect their products.
http://www.arcticheat.com.au/
http://www.arcticheatusa.com/

I found the best way was to dunk it in a bucket of water and then let it drip dry for 20 minutes or so. A bit drier under clothing but still plenty of 'water charge'. I found as long as I kept out of full sun I could manage the heat quite well. I even got a bit 'hypothermic' getting into late afternoon/dusk and had to take it off!

The only downside is that you tend to leave a damp patch on car seats!

Hope that helps,

Colin