How To Survive Hot Weather (source)
- Foods generate metabolic heat when the body breaks it down. So, to beat the heat, avoid larger meals. Instead, have small meals more often. Also, avoid foods that are rich in protein.
- Eat plenty of spicy food as these stimulate the heat receptors in the mouth and increase the sweating thus cooling the body down.
- Another way is to keep your wrists under a cold tap of water every couple of hours. This will cool your blood as the main vein passes through the wrists.
- Before going to bed take a bath in lukewarm water. A cold shower will only generate the heat afterwards to compensate for the heat loss.
- If there is a basement in the house then you can take recourse in it during very hot days, as basements are generally 15 to 20 degrees cooler than the rest of the house.
- During hot weather, cotton clothes are the best. Wear loose, lightweight and light colored cotton clothes. This is because synthetic fibers trap the heat while cotton cloths reflect the sun’s radiation. In addition, the cotton also helps in the evaporation of sweat that makes the body cooler.
- To stop the heat from coming to your house, cover all the doors and windows with curtains.
- Drink plenty of water and fruit juices throughout the day. Avoid caffeine-based drinks like coffee and also avoid colas as they increase the metabolic heat. Also, stay away from alcohol as it dehydrates the body.
- Aloe Vera is an excellent moisturizer that you can use to lower the skin temperature.
- Avoid strenuous activity as it increases the body temperature. During hot weather, it is best to exercise early in the morning or late in the evening.
- Another method to cool the skin is to use liquid ice. They come with reusable ice wrap that can be directly wrapped on the skin to cool it.
- Chrysanthemum is a cooling herb that is very effective in reducing the body heat. Drink chrysanthemum tea, three to four times a day to get relief from heat.
- Invest in an air conditioning unit. This can cool your house thus providing relief from the heat.
- Apply cold mudpack to the stomach and the eyes twice a day. This will cool down your entire body.
- Another good option is to go for aromatherapy. This uses essential oils that calm the body.
- To treat sunburns, mix one tablespoon of aloe vera with three drops of lavender essential oil. Apply this mixture to the affected area.
An economist would ask: 1. for each of these; how costly is to adopt in terms of $, and time spent implementing it and discomfort from doing it? 2. If you implement each of these, how much do they together "offset" the heat exposure?
