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Beat the summertime heat
ATLANTA (CNNSI.com) -- Summer temperatures here once again are hovering near the 100-degree mark, when heat can kill. "Anytime the heat index is 100 degrees or higher, there is a danger of heat-related illness," Dr. Stanley Speegle, an emergency room physician at Harris Methodist Southwest Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas, tells WebMD.com. "Hot, humid climates are the worst because you can’t get out of the heat. Your body’s evaporating mechanism doesn’t work as well." When the temperature is 98 degrees and the humidity is 60 percent, the heat index is 123 degrees, according to the Texas Department of Health’s division of emergency preparedness. Even with only 40 percent humidity, the index is 107 degrees. The humidity prevents evaporation of sweat, the body’s cooling mechanism. Without evaporation, the skin and blood aren’t cooled and your temperature rises, causing more sweating. But that sweat doesn’t evaporate either. The increased sweating means that your body is losing fluid and dehydrating. If the fluids and minerals lost during this cycle aren’t replaced immediately, then body temperature can reach dangerous levels. When people experience heat stress, their body temperature needs to be lowered. Experts recommend spraying them with water, applying ice packs, covering them with wet sheets while directing a fan at them, and offering nonalcoholic, sugar- and caffeine-free drinks. But many people don’t realize that their body temperature has reached dangerous levels, meaning heat stress can become severe and develop into possibly fatal heat stroke. Any time the body’s temperature reaches 102 degrees, there is the potential for danger. Some additional signs of heat exhaustion are profuse sweating, paleness, muscle cramps, tiredness, weak-but-rapid pulse, fast yet shallow, breathing and fainting. If not treated, the body temperature can rise to 105 degrees or more, the point at which the body goes into heat stroke. The symptoms include failure to sweat, rapid pulse, throbbing headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion, seizures, redness, dry skin and unconsciousness. Experts advise that during the hot summers, people drink two to five times more water and non-sugary, nonalcoholic beverages than normal. Clothing should be lightweight, loose fitting, light-colored, and breathable. Always wear a wide-brimmed hat and sunscreen of at least 15 SPF, which will help keep the skin temperature down by preventing sunburn. Try to stay in the shade or air conditioning as much as possible. If you are exercising, acclimatize yourself by taking breaks that are twice as long as the length of the exercise period. These rest periods should be in the shade and include drinking fluids. So, if you exercise for 10 minutes, take a 20-minute break.
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