How to escape the heat

Heat and stifling heat can often be a terrible thing. Now that the whole of Europe is suffering from record-breaking heat (I’m not even talking about the Middle East and Central Asia), you want to cool down more than ever.

At the time of writing this article, I am in my hometown and the temperature outside is 43 degrees in the sun and 39 in the shade. Sweat is pouring down in hailstones and it’s getting bad, my heart hurts. With such weather, due to the change of climatic conditions, the population of the planet Earth will have to face every summer. This is especially true for tourists, as there is a need to go on another trip in the heat of the day.

When you are in such difficult climatic conditions, it is extremely important to stay healthy. To do this, you need to follow a number of rules and nuances, knowing some tricks, which will be discussed in my article.

I’m going to look at ways to survive the heat without endangering yourself, reduce its harmful effects and improve your own health, based on medical advice and years of experience of those peoples who have lived in hot climates for centuries, coping with such weather by time-tested means.

In addition, I plan to bust a number of myths and warn against those tips that are all over the internet if you type in the query “How to escape the heat”. A number of them not only will not help, but can seriously harm your health.

General recommendations

To begin with, I want to talk about the most banal recommendations that will suit everyone. You need to know them like the plain truths, because if you don’t follow them, you can suffer quite seriously.

Heat and hot weather can cause heat stroke, sunstroke, dehydration, swelling of the face, hands and feet. They increase the strain on the cardiovascular system and force the body to work under conditions that make it increasingly difficult for it to overcome any stresses it could previously handle without problems.

Drinking

Water

Fluid is one of the most essential components in the human body. One of the main problems that drive people unconscious in the heat is dehydration.

With an acute lack of fluid in the body, a sharp deterioration of well-being begins. This affects all parts of the body. A prime example that I know as a bicycle traveler is pain in the knee joint. When cycling, even in the most intense heat, you are blown around by even a small breeze, and you just don’t feel the heat and the loss of fluid through sweat. Soon you begin to experience sharp pain in your knee, one or both at once. Riding through the pain can be impossible. However, it is worth stopping and drinking water, and in 5 minutes you are ready for the road again.

Naturally, putting yourself under stress is not a good idea. Therefore, you should be concerned about fluid levels in advance.

When calculating this amount, various other liquids are not taken into account, including coffee, tea, sodas and the like.

We are talking about water, and not just tap water. If you drink ordinary bottled water, there will be no particular benefit, and it may be the other way around. If you drink a lot of water, it will go out more and more with sweat and remove necessary salts and electrolytes from the body.

I recommend doing one of the following:

• Buy mineral, non-carbonated water. You need the one that will have at least a little bit significant level of mineralization. An example is water “Morshinska”. It has a wonderful taste and good mineralization.
• Add a little salt to plain water. This is already from the category of “do-it-yourself”, but often an indispensable option. For a liter of purified water will be enough ordinary food salt (or even better – iodized sea salt) on the tip of a knife and 14 teaspoons of sugar. In such concentrations they will not affect the taste of the liquid, but will help to replenish the necessary balance of electrolytes in the cells of your body.
• In case you can not take a lot of fluids with you (for example – in a bike race or crossing the desert), or for one reason or another you take ordinary purified water, then to replenish the necessary balance in the body can help the drug “rehydron”. It can be diluted in a very – very weak consistency of a teaspoon per 3 – 4 liters instead of salt and sugar, or you can take a separate bottle for 0.5 liters and dilute it in the correct proportions. You should take 1 – 2 small sips every 20 – 40 minutes in addition to your normal drinking with which you will replenish your fluid balance. Although, it should be noted that the taste qualities of such a solution leave much to be desired, but it is still obliged to be in your medicine cabinet.

Sweet and carbonated beverages

Many people, especially children, like to drink sweet water and sodas in the heat. Sprite, Fanta, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and other bottles and cans of fizzy drinks are flying off the shelves of stores so fast that sellers do not have time to punch a check on their cash register.

However, it’s worth noting that they don’t help. Not at all. Firstly, they contain a huge amount of sugar, which makes you even more thirsty after drinking a serving. Secondly, the large amount of gas can start to make your stomach uncomfortable, which is no fun when the weather is so heavy.

All these soft drinks win only due to the fact that they are stored in the refrigerator. After drinking one of these, for a very short period of time (up to 10 minutes) a person feels relief, after which an increased attack of thirst begins.

Coffee

You can’t drink coffee in the heat, not at all. I know that coffee drinkers will throw rags at me right now, but nothing can be done about it. Coffee does not quench thirst, on the contrary, it makes it worse. Caffeine puts additional strain on the heart, which is already not happy about the weather.

If you can not live without this flavorful drink – then you can drink literally a little. At the same time do not count it as a liquid, but on the contrary.

Don’t drink a strong espresso or Americano. Try to limit yourself to light ones: frappe, cappuccino. Better yet, replace it with cocoa.

Beer and other alcohol

Alcohol in the heat is suicide. And it’s extremely dangerous to drink it.

I am not a particular admirer of alcoholic beverages, but I don’t mind enjoying a good cognac or whiskey. So do not think that I am speaking now from the side of the defender of sober lifestyle. It is your way of life and it is not for me to meddle in it. However, alcohol, once in the body, very strongly dilates blood vessels and raises blood pressure. Together with the heat, this can have very unfortunate consequences.

Beer is a separate conversation. I have no idea why, but people in many countries love to drink it in the heat. They drink liters of it, thinking that it quenches thirst, although it is not so. But the hoppy component is a great way to put a strain on your heart. Considering that some people manage to drink beer on the beach, under the scorching sun and then plunge into the water… This is unacceptable.

Tea

Tea in the heat is a good way to deal with not feeling well. This is where the conundrums I mentioned come into play. Absolute cognitive dissonance in people who grew up in our latitudes. We’ve never known serious heat. And so we think we can cool down by drinking something cold.

Inhabitants of hot regions (Middle East and Central Asia) are much more knowledgeable and know that hot tea without sugar is one of the best remedies in the hot season.

Turks often go to the beach after 6pm with a samovar and sit there drinking hot tea.

Uzbeks have a tradition of sitting down in their robes with a cup of hot, unsweetened tea. They drink it with delicious grapes.

Indeed, if you drink hot tea in the heat, you will feel relieved. I often do that myself now. The reason for this is that immediately a person starts to sweat a lot, which cools down the body.

Sour milk products

When it gets really hot and I’m thirsty, I often use fermented milk products to quench my thirst.

Ancient nomadic peoples, who regularly wandered the desert, believed that these were the drinks that best helped quench thirst. They used koumiss, shubat, matsun for this purpose. Many of them are sold not only in places of distribution, but also in Ukraine and Russia (for example – ayran and tan).

Domestic kefir, familiar to us all since childhood, is no worse. Take it with minimal fat content and savor it with pleasure!

Food

In the hot season, you should not eat a lot of fried, salty and spicy foods. These foods increase thirst, put a strain on the heart and blood vessels. They are hard for the stomach to digest.

Instead, try to lean on fruits and vegetables. Make okroshka with kefir or kvass, or similar dishes with sour-milk inclusion of other nationalities (for example – chalop).

Replace meat with poultry (chicken and turkey are great alternatives) and fish, especially saltwater fish.

Ice cream

Eating ice cream in the summer is just pampering. I eat it every day and try different varieties in different countries, but I always do it purely for the taste. And I don’t rely on it to help me cope with thirst or heat. After all, this product is very sweet, and therefore it will make you even more thirsty. And I’m not talking about those varieties that have added icing, chocolate and other ingredients that, together with flavorings and additives, make you want to drink more and more.

How to escape the heat indoors

Let’s look at the most common situations when you need to somehow reduce the harmful effects of heat on the human body. This happens both outdoors and indoors. And very often, in rooms not equipped with air conditioning, the temperature is much higher than outside the window.

So I decided to turn to both science and other peoples’ experiences, trying to find the most convenient ways.

When you are in an apartment, let alone your own, everything is very simplified. You’re free to do whatever you want. And the first thing I recommend, if possible, is to get rid of all unnecessary clothes. At home, you can afford to be in a light robe or in shorts or swimming trunks or underwear.

If there is an air conditioner available, you should use it. However, it is ideal to do it when you are not in the room. That is, when you go outdoors or just to the next room, turn it on and let it cool down. And when you come back, turn it off. It will help you not to get sick, it will be easier for your organism to adapt to a sharp temperature difference, and the conditioner will last much longer.

Please note that the air conditioner can be switched on only when the windows are closed. Otherwise, it will work “idle”, thus giving no cooling effect, but seriously reducing its working life.

In the event. If you do not have an air conditioner, you can replace it with a fan. Moreover, you can increase its efficiency by about 1 degree by placing in front of it, at a small distance, several 2 or 1.5-liter bottles of frozen water.

Pay attention to the temperature inside the house and outside. It is very convenient to do this when you have a thermometer installed both.

• If the temperature outside is higher, then the best thing to do is to close the windows so as not to let in the hot air from outside.
• When the temperature is about the same, it will be very good to open a few windows to allow air movement due to drafts and cool the room.
• When it’s cooler outside – it’s clear here without me. I guess. We just open the windows.

The windows themselves, especially in strong sunshine, should be closed. Curtains, roller blinds or blinds are at your discretion. Some people even glue foil on the windows. This is really effective, but it greatly reduces the aesthetic appearance, in my opinion.

Next, I would like to turn to Uzbek traditions that I have adopted for myself. You can go to a shower, but not a cold one, but slightly hot. When you come out of it (without wiping yourself) and put on a light natural robe, you will feel a significant relief.

In addition, you can drink not only water, but also hot tea without sugar, snacking on fresh grapes.

In the hotel, office, school – almost the same advice is typical, only in underwear you were harmed here will be allowed to walk around.

How to escape the heat outside

You won’t be able to carry an air conditioner on the street, and therefore your main ally will be properly fitting clothes.

The first thing to learn is that long sleeves and pants are your everything. It is long, as loose as possible clothes made of natural fabrics.

As you probably know, the lightest and “breathable” fabrics are considered to be sateen, chiffon and cotton. And despite the fact that they wrinkle very much in their pure form, it is from them it is desirable to buy clothes

For men I would recommend loose and light pants, summer loafers made of suede or leather. The top is a loose, light-colored release shirt.

Women and girls are perfect for light sandals under light natural dresses below the knees in warm colors. And I’m not talking about a fashion trend right now, but a way to increase body heat and reduce the feeling of heat.

Be sure to cover your head. Men – caps or arafat, ladies – hats or scarves. Don’t tell me about “unfashionable”, as lying down with sunstroke is even less cool.

Such clothes will protect your skin from harmful UV rays and overheating. If you still decide to wear short shirts and shorts with sandals – then you’d better choose fabrics that dissipate heat well (synthetic materials used to make sports uniforms have proven themselves), and it is advisable to apply sunscreen to unprotected areas of the skin.

hot place. You can try to find a place in the shade or go indoors where it is cooler. Going down to the water or into the woods would be ideal. But, it is worth remembering that hiding indoors in any hot country will instantly bring you into a cold environment where the air conditioning is on full blast. It is important to carry a lightweight cape to avoid getting sick.

How to escape the heat in the car

If you are unlucky and the car you are traveling in does not have air conditioning and climate control, you will have to make do with improvised means.

Water bottles pre-frozen in the freezer and placed near the air ducts will come to your rescue.

Try not to park the car under the open sun, find at least a little shade. And in any case, cover it, especially the windows with special, anti-sun screens, which can be bought at any car market. Due to the reflective surface they will perfectly protect the car from unnecessary heating from the sun, while you are doing your business and will not have to climb into the hot interior.

And it is best to hang them from the outside, not the inside. It’s much more effective that way. They cost pennies and you should not be sorry if they are stolen. Although, it would be good to have a spare for such a case, as well as with other equipment for car travel.

By opening the windows, you make your way easier by creating a small draught. In order to achieve this draught, you need to open at least two opposite windows.

Well, don’t forget to flush the radiator before your trip, this will also help lower the cabin temperature by a couple of degrees.

How to escape the heat on the train

Spraying with ordinary water helps well. To do this, you can buy a cap – sprayer in any hardware store (sold for spraying flowers), put it on a small bottle and spray each other =).

It is worth remembering that the legislation establishes norms that cannot be violated by the carrier. In particular, they concern the temperature inside the carriages and compartments. If it exceeds the permissible temperature, you can demand a solution to this problem and then claim financial compensation.

Conclusions

All of these tips I’ve posted above are, of course, not true in the last instance. There are a lot of nuances here. However, the following conclusions can be drawn:

1. Drink more fluids
2. Do not drink alcohol, coffee, sugary drinks
3. Eat your fruit and vegetables
4. Wear lightweight clothing made of natural fabrics.

What you should not do is sit directly under a fan or air conditioner in extreme heat, or wear wet clothes. This can cause a person to get sore throat or pneumonia.

At the same time, by following these simple rules, you can stay healthy while escaping the heat that so sometimes exhausts you.

And I want to ask you – do you know of any other ways I forgot to mention?