Summer is a great time of year to get outside and have some fun. However, as temperatures soar, staying healthy in the summer heat can be challenging. It’s easy to become overheated, sunburned, or dehydrated if you’re not taking the right steps to stay healthy and safe. Here, we offer some tips to stay healthy no matter how hot the summer gets.
- Be mindful of the time of day. Stay out of the heat when it’s at its peak, staying indoors as much as possible during the hottest times of day. Even if you spend only two hours of your day in an air-conditioned space, you can significantly reduce your chances of succumbing to a heat-related illness. Don’t have access to air conditioning? Get out of the sunshine and stay on the lowest floor of the building.
- Dress for the weather. This doesn’t necessarily mean wearing as little clothing as possible. Rather, it means wearing light-colored, loose-fitting clothes in lightweight fabric. While it may seem counterintuitive, covering as much skin as possible is one of the best ways to stay healthy when the sun is beating down on you. Light-colored clothing can keep you cool by reflecting heat and sunlight. Wearing a wide-brimmed hat will protect your face and head.
- Wear sunscreen every time you leave the house. Getting a sunburn dramatically reduces your skin’s ability to cool itself. Of course, it also increases your risk of developing skin cancer. Use a broad spectrum sunscreen with a high SPF rating on all visible skin.
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. We can’t stress this enough. Even if you don’t feel thirsty, you should be drinking water constantly in the summer. When you’re sweating, even if you’re only doing moderately strenuous activity, your body won’t be able to absorb fluids as quickly as it loses water. One caveat: talk to your doctor before raising your fluid intake if you suffer from certain conditions, including epilepsy, heart, kidney, or liver disease, or problems with fluid retention.
- Limit your intake of alcoholic beverages and caffeine. While an ice cold beer or soda on a hot day may seem refreshing, these refreshing beverages can actually be dehydrating. Additionally, alcohol and caffeine can cause the blood vessels near your skin to constrict and limit the amount of heat that your body can release.
- Slow your pace. There’s a reason the South is known for its slow-moving culture. The best way to stay healthy in the heat is to slow things down. If you want to run, bike, or do yard work, save these activities for the early morning or late evening, when the heat is not as intense. A better option for exercising in the summer is a refreshing dip in a cool pool.
When you’re looking for the best ways to stay healthy, no matter the season, it’s important to know you can get high quality medical care that’s easy to access. The goal of Total Point Urgent Care is to be a convenient healthcare resource for our community. Providing immediate medical care at a fraction of the cost of an emergency room, our neighborhood clinics offer warm, efficient, personalized care. At our locations in Texas, our on-site technology and services include urgent care, primary care, specialty care, routine checkups, COVID-19 testing, and onsite lab and x rays. Soon, we’ll even offer virtual visits so that our patients can choose telecare instead of risking a trip to the clinic. For convenient medical care, visit one of our locations or contact us through our website.
