Canadians are a funny people. We spend 10 months of the year whining about the cold and the snow and the wind and the ice, but two days into weather that is above 25 degrees and suddenly we are complaining about how darn hot it is.

The other day I heard someone, while dramatically laying back with her hand on her head, announce she had heat stroke. It was 27 degrees and she’d only been outside for about 20 minutes. Let me just clarify what heat stroke is, and why 99% of you reading this have never had it.

Our bodies normally stay at a temperature of 37 degrees Celsius. We have this intuitive little organ within our brain called the hypothalamus, which acts as a thermostat for our bodies. When we are too hot, it tells the body to sweat and dilate our blood vessels near the surface of our skin to cool off. When we are too cold, it sends a message to conserve heat by shivering and constricting our blood vessels so less heat escapes.

The problem comes when the hypothalamus has done all it can do, and yet our body is still heating up. There are three types of hyperthermia (the opposite of hypothermia or high body temperature).

The first type, heat cramps, typically occurs while playing sports or working outside on a hot day. After sweating excessively and losing a large amount of water and electrolytes, you can start to feel cramps in your muscles. All that is needed to remedy heat cramps is to remove yourself from the heat, massage the cramps, and replace your electrolytes. The best way is with oral saline (4 tsp of salt to one litre of water) but if that makes you want to gag, try eating a banana. They are very effective at balancing electrolytes. If you use one of those electrolyte balancing drinks, cut it in half by water as they are much too concentrated for your body to use well.

The next level in hyperthermia is heat exhaustion. Excessive sweating in a hot, humid climate causes decreased fluids and dehydration. The person’s body temperature may be elevated up to 37.8 degrees Celsius but not higher than 40. The signs of heat exhaustion are cool, clammy skin, fast heart rate, weak feeling and a headache. The best thing to do is again get that person out of the heat. (Sounds like common sense but when you only get three weeks of summer, it’s sometimes hard to leave that big beautiful ball of fire behind.) Cool them down by fanning them and give them fluids. The best again is salted water. The key is to not cool them down too much or too fast as in some cases it can actually cause hypothermia (too cold) since the hypothalamus is out of whack by now.

Now we come to the very serious stage of hyperthermia – heat stroke. This is when you’ve been sitting in a hot tub for five hours in 38-degree weather, not drinking water and sweating like a thief on Sunday. Heat stroke isn’t necessarily a progression from heat exhaustion as it can be caused by a problem with a person’s hypothalamus (natural thermostat). Diabetics can become hyperthermic more easily, as well.

If a person truly has heat stroke, they may no longer be sweating. The hypothalamus is so overwhelmed that it can no longer compensate for the excessive heat and dehydration. Their skin will be dry and hot, their core temperature will be above 40 degrees, the blood pressure will drop, they’ll have a fast heart rate and often will be confused and restless. Seizures, vomiting and unconsciousness can even occur. This is a true emergency as damage to internal organs may result from a temperature over 40.6. Call 911 immediately.

The key is prevention. If you are exercising or working outside on a hot day, be sure to stay well hydrated. But don’t worry. Winter is only a month or two away.

Erika Baltrus/Special to e-KNOW

Erika Baltrus is a displaced person – a B..C native who currently is living in Calgary but her itchy feet don’t let her stay in one location long. To date she’s visited 28 countries and has moved at least 25 times in her short life. Being a transient vagabond has also led her down several career paths. To name a few, she’s worked as a lifeguard, swimming instructor, marketing coordinator, event manager, scuba dive master, waitress, barista, college sports coordinator, and journalist. Currently she works as both a sales manager for a microbrewery and a Primary Care Paramedic; the randomness of this doesn’t escape her. Her wandering ways have given her a little bit of knowledge about a lot of things, but not a lot about anything, as her articles will likely show.

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