Then came the flurry of reminders to stay hydrated, to stay in the shade, to cool one’s self along with constant posts of health advisories from health authorities warning against the extreme weather conditions.
But what exactly do experts day when the mercury in your thermometer moves steadily north? What exactly does the body feel under extreme heat?
According to the National Weather Service, the body’s cooling mechanism starts to malfunction under extremely hot weather.
Exposing yourself to extreme heat would make your body heat up too rapidly. There is also the danger of losing too much salt and fluid in your body when you sweat, leading to dehydration.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also provided a list of warning signs and symbols that could mean that your body should take it easy.
The National Health Service lists the following as danger signs of dehydration: feeling thirsty and lightheaded; a dry mouth; tiredness, having dark coloured, strong-smelling urine; and passing urine less often than usual.
Another heat-related condition is heat exhaustion, or the condition when your body overheats.
Mayo Clinic lists the following as its symptoms:
Cool, moist skin with goose bumps when in the heat, heavy sweating, faintness, dizziness, fatigue, weak, rapid pulse, low blood pressure upon standing, muscle cramps, nausea, headaches.
On the hand, the most serious heat-related illness, can have the following symptoms: Confusion; altered mental status; slurred speech; loss of consciousness (coma); hot, dry skin, or profuse sweating; seizures; very; high body temperature. Heat strokes can be fatal if treatment is delayed.
The CDC recommends to immediately call the emergency numbers in case symptoms appear. Especially vulnerable are pregnant people, the elderly, or those with elevated blood pressure.
