The heat is on: How you can beat it this summer
Heatstroke happens when your body reaches a temperature of 104 degrees, far above its normal 98.6 degrees. It’s the most severe form of hyperthermia — or heat illness — and can be deadly.
The body's core temperature begins to rise to that dangerous level when it cannot cool itself through traditional means of circulation or perspiration or when it cannot compensate quickly enough for fluids and minerals lost from sweating. Heat cramps set in and if remedies aren’t taken, heatstroke occurs. And it can happen fast, too — within 10 or 15 minutes.
The number of deaths from heatstroke is on the rise throughout the world. Higher temperatures are certainly to blame, but poor diets, geography and lack of preparedness also play a large role.
Munich Re, the world’s largest reinsurance company, reported this month that the first half of the year saw record death tolls from natural disasters, including heat waves. More than 16,000 people died from natural disasters in the first half of 2015, up from 2,800 who died from similar causes during the same period last year.
Last month, a heat wave scorched parts of India and Pakistan, killing more than 3,000 people. Record-breaking heat waves have also hit the U.S.: Nevada broke its June temperature record, and Alaska had higher temperatures than Arizona on Memorial Day.
While cases of heat illness and deaths have been reported throughout the country, no current national heat injury statistics have been released. (The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent data is from 2010 and shows an average of some 620 deaths per year in the U.S. as a result of heat.)
The Occupational Safety and Health Organization (OSHA) is stepping up efforts to mandate prevention efforts at companies due to thousands of cases of heat-related illnesses on the job. Construction and agriculture workers are especially at risk.
July is the warmest month of the year for the country. The Florida Keys typically has the warmest average temperature. However, Death Valley, Calif., experienced the hottest temperature ever recorded on earth — 134 degrees in July 1913.
It’s wise to take some precautions to beat the heat before it tries to beat you. Here are some things you can do.
• Understand the heat index: The heat index combines the air temperature and relative humidity to show what it feels like outside. For example, if it’s 96 degrees but the humidity level is 65%, it actually feels like it’s 121 degrees outside. Check out the National Weather Service heat index.
• Stay hydrated: Fluids replace important electrolytes that are lost when the body heats up and sweats.
• Eat lighter, well-balanced meals: This regulates the body and keeps core temperatures down. Try to avoid foods high in protein as these increase metabolic rates and, in turn, your body’s temperature.
• Avoid alcohol, caffeine, and large amounts of sugar: These all can lead to dehydration.
• Plan exercise and strenuous work for earlier in the day: The hottest part of any day is the late afternoon.
• Take cooler showers and baths: This helps reduce your overheated body temperature.
• Keep the lights off as much as possible: This not only reduces temperatures, it also poses less of a drain on power grids, which become more vulnerable to outages during high temperatures when more people use air conditioning.
Thomas M. Kostigen is the founder of TheClimateSurvivalist.com and a New York Times best-selling author and journalist. He is the National Geographic author of "The Extreme Weather Survival Guide: Understand, Prepare, Survive, Recover" and the NG Kids book" Extreme Weather: Surviving Tornadoes, Tsunamis, Hailstorms, Thundersnow, Hurricanes and More!" Follow him @weathersurvival, or email kostigen@theclimatesurvivalist.com.
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