How to defy the heat: 13 tips for cool heads

It should be thirty degrees and more in many places this weekend. What sounds like good news for sun worshipers is a lot of trouble: High temperatures are a burden for the body. We reveal how to protect yourself in the heat – what really cools down:

Already under normal circumstances, i.e. at pleasant temperatures, an adult should drink one and a half to two liters of water or tea a day. The need increases significantly at higher temperatures. A good indicator of whether you drank enough is the color of the urine. It should be slightly light yellow and not dark. However, caution is advised for ice -cold drinks because they can hit the stomach. In addition, the body has to spend energy to heat it. If you drink a lot, you also have to consume enough electrolytes. Because when sweating (intensive) the body, the body also leaves a lot of minerals over the skin. Since older people like to forget the grip for the water glass, you should remind them from time to time. There are also apps for the smartphone that do this automatically.

On hot days you should keep the windows closed during the day. Even better: shuttle shops, roller blinds or blinds – so the apartment remains pleasantly cool. It also helps to switch off TV, computer, dryer. Because in stand-by mode, the devices release additional heat. On the balcony or a terrace, the awning, sun sails and umbrellas ensure shadow spaces.

The early hours of the morning are best suited for excursions and physical exertion when it is not so hot and sunny. Hike or bike tours should be very taboo at lunchtime. It usually takes some time before it cools down in the evening. Avoid very long excursions without stopping to cool down.

Heavy physical activities should generally be avoided in heat. But gardening or a tennis match during midday heat and bright sunshine can also put a lot of strain on the body. Especially when there is also great ambition for fun.

In addition to sufficient drinks, good sun protection is essential. The sunscreen should have at least UV protection factor 30, better 50; Otherwise there is a risk of sunburn. A headgear is also very important. If in doubt, it protects against a dangerous heat stroke. If possible, wear light, airy and breathable clothing. So the air can circulate on the body.

Avoid black paved roads and concrete surfaces, because these heat up particularly strongly. Search for the most shaded green spaces, i.e. parks, gardens or backyards. Shopping arcades or public buildings are often less hot. Churches or subway stations also promise cooling.

Because “under the influence of alcohol, a hormone is inhibited in the body, which actually ensures that liquid is held back there. Then the body dehydrates even faster,” warns medical officer Hanns-Christian Gunga.

Good sleep is important to give the body a break break. If possible, ventilate your bedrooms at night when it is cooler outside. If it hardly cools down at night, a fan may be found that at least creates a slight feeling of cold. He also dries sweat on the skin, which ensures evaporation cold. Another way to cool down the body is damp envelopes on arms, legs, forehead or neck. Even cool foot baths, a lukewarm shower or a hot water filled with cold water cause cooling. If you have the opportunity, you can also consider letting your place to sleep. It gets particularly hot when you sleep under the roof.

“Even one percent loss of body water leads to measurable restrictions on mental performance in an adult,” says extra-term doctor Hanns-Christian Gunga. What follows is dizziness, headache, muscle disorders, shortness of breath. Loss of fluids of ten percent of body weight are life -threatening. The problem: older people in particular do not always feel sufficient thirst. In addition, as with certain previous illnesses such as diabetes, the heat output via the skin does not work optimally. You can easily test whether the body gets enough fluid by standing naked on a scale in the morning and in the evening. Check the heat effect of your medication!

Some medication can influence the temperature regulation of our body, inhibit sweating or increase the loss of fluid. “If you take blood pressure lowerers, if your vessels expand, you can suffer a collapse because there is not enough blood volume available for the brain,” says Gunga. Medications that are absorbed as plaster over the skin suddenly achieve much higher doses because the skin is increasingly supplied with blood. Others change or lose their effects in the event of great warmth or then have to be stored particularly cool. “You should definitely discuss something like this with your family doctor in front of a heat wave,” advises Gunga.

Prefer planned activities or postpone them if the weather forecast warns of too strong heat and sun warns. There is additional danger in the event of high humidity, according to Gunga: 33 degrees air temperature at 100 percent air humidity feel like 55 degrees.

Dizziness, headache and drowsiness, nausea, cramps or an increased body temperature are alarm signals. Also very red or very pale skin, fever, vomiting can be harbing of a circulatory collapse or a dangerous heat slaughter.

It has long been established in some southern countries: an extensive lunch break. If you can, you should withdraw here in the hottest time and move part of the work to the evening. Your body will thank you.