Staying Healthy in the Summer Heat
By: Alex Hale
Updated: June 24, 2009
Dr. Matt Callaway of South Arkansas Medical Associates says, "Stay in, undercover under shade during the middle part of the day when its the hottest, do most of your outdoor activities in the morning, stay well hydrated."
Dr. Callaway tells NBC 10 that those are just a few of the things you can do to keep yourself healthy in the summer heat. We expect heat in the ArkLaMiss in the summer, but today?! It's just too much.
The Smackover State Bank sign in El Dorado reads 97 degrees and were only 4 days into the summer season. Its only going to get hotter so what can you do?
Dr. Matt Callaway says the obvious solution is to stay inside in the air conditioning as much as you can. Because it's not just the heat, add the humidity and it can be downright dangerous out there.
Dr. Callaway says, "The humidity also plays a part if its wet heat like we have in South Arkansas and North Louisiana. As I tell people it's hot but it's wet heat and that makes the heat transfer a lot more efficiently in your body and doesn't allow you to sweat and lose the heat. That's the key- air movement and losing the heat to keep yourself from overheating." Dr. Callaway can't stress enough how important fluids are. Water, water and more water! Sodas won't help you stay hydrated in this heat. Sports drinks like Gatorade and Powerade are a good option for most people. They can help restore the electrolytes the sun is taking out of you. If you do get overheated and suffer from heat exhaustion, Dr. Callaway has answers for that too.
He says "You'll have fatigue, be weak, sometimes cramping, you can get confused-sweating-- get in cool place. Get clothes loose or off as you can so you can radiate heat out. Cool liquids will cool down your core temperature."
And that's important because the heat can actually kill you if you don't get relief fast.
