For some people living in the Northern Hemisphere, summer is the time to dash toward beaches in the sweltering heat. However, it can still be dangerous, especially with the high humidity in place. Heat waves are known to be deadly, especially for young children and elderly people, who are at the greatest risk of getting a heat stroke. To tolerate a heat wave, understanding the tips to do so are easy. They include staying indoors with the air conditioner going, sampling lots of water, and wearing light, loosely-fitted clothing.
Drink Plenty of Good Fluids
Drinking lots of nourishing fluids, especially water, can keep yourself cool during the heat. The best way to cool your body is to drink at least eight glasses’ worth of water a day. Do not drink any alcoholic beverages, because they will do more harm than good to your body system. Popular summertime drinks such as Kool-Aid or lemonade will not help much, since their confined sugars will allow you to become thirsty too often. Sports drinks, as they typically don’t have any sugars, are fine. Wherever you might be during the heat wave – at your office or at home – have a cold water bottle handy for drinking. Once it is empty, refill it as soon as possible.
Wear Light Clothing
You can wear clothing that has a lot of air flow concentration to keep yourself cool. Any articles of clothing that have bright colors are likely to have more air penetrating through their layers than clothing having darker colors. Wearing a plain-old white t-shirt and a pair of shorts can be easily worn on a hot day without discomfort. Just be sure that you don’t overdress. You don’t need to wear pants in the hot weather, unless you’re on a job.
Stay in Air-Cooled Buildings
Stay indoors with the air conditioner as much as possible. It is simple to just stay inside with that air turned on at full blast. For maximum comfort, have all your windows closed while the air conditioner is on. If your home does not have an air conditioner, stay at a friend or relative’s home that has it. Or, make every effort to stay near a fan that is turned on. Use ice packs if necessary.
Stay in Shading
If you need to venture or work in the heat, stay in the shaded areas as long as possible. Even in the high heat and humidity, you can still afford to work under a large tree (i.e. a maple tree) that provides plenty of shading. Try parking your car in a tree’s shadow on a parking lot to keep the vehicle and yourself as cool as possible. Just stay out of the sun; although slapping on some sunscreen still needs to be in order to prevent sunburns.
Heat waves can kill people if they don’t abide with them the right way. Young children and elderly people are more likely to receive a heat stroke or heat-related illness. Just keep yourself cool by staying indoors, wearing clothing with light colors, and drinking plenty of water and other helpful fluids.
