Get It While It’s Hot!

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Last month we listed a few tips in our newsletter on how to stay safe while having fun in the sun as summer began. Needless to say, we hope that you have been utilizing them! The incredible heat wave that has swept the nation has significantly impacted Colorado, making history with record high temperatures and contributing to the worst wildfires the state has ever seen. With the warmest June on record here now over, we hope that July provides at least a little relief from the extreme conditions. If you are adamant about continuing your outdoor exercise or recreation during this heat, try doing them early or late in the day when it is mildly cooler, stay hydrated, and find adequate shade when you can so that you avoid succumbing to heat exhaustion or worse, heat stroke. Here is the difference between the two:
Heat exhaustion: This condition often occurs when people work or play in a hot, humid place and body fluids are lost through sweating, causing dehydration and overheating of the body. The person’s temperature may become elevated, but not above 104 F (40 C).
Heat stroke: Heat stroke, also referred to as heatstroke or sun stroke, is a life-threatening medical condition. The person’s cooling system, which is controlled by the brain, stops working and the internal body temperature rises to the point at which brain damage or damage to other internal organs may result (temperature may reach 105 F or greater [40.5 C or greater]).