Keep it Cool with Hot Weather Advice
    For Older People    

Older people are at high risk for developing heat-related illness because the ability to respond to summer heat can become less efficient with advancing years. Fortunately, the summer can remain safe and enjoyable for everyone who uses good, sound judgment.

Heat stress, heat fatigue, heat syncope (sudden dizziness after exercising in the heat), heat cramps and heat exhaustion are all forms of “hyperthermia,” the general name given to a variety of heat-related illnesses. Symptoms may include headache, nausea, muscle spasms and fatigue after exposure to heat. If you suspect someone is suffering from a heat-related illness:





Heat stroke is especially dangerous for older people and requires emergency medical attention. A person with heat stroke has a body temperature above 104 and may have symptoms such as confusion, combativeness, bizarre behavior, faintness, staggering, strong rapid pulse, dry flushed skin, lack of sweating, possible delirium or coma.

The temperature does not have to hit 100 for a person to be at risk for hyperthermia. Both, an individual’s general health and/or lifestyle may increase the threat of a heat-related illness. Health factors which may increase risk include:








Lifestyle factors also can increase risk, including extremely hot living quarters, lack of transportation, overdressing, visiting overcrowded places and not understanding weather conditions. Older people, particularly those at special risk, should stay indoors on especially hot and humid days, particularly when there is an air pollution alert in effect. People without fans or air conditioners should go to shopping malls, movie houses and libraries. Friends or relatives might be asked to supply transportation on particularly hot days. Many communities, area agencies, religious groups and senior citizen centers also provide such services as cooling centers.

For a free copy of the National Institute on Aging’s AgePage on hyperthermia and other important health information, please contact the NIA Information Center at 1-800-222-2225 or go to http://www.niapublications.org/agepages/hyperther.asp. The NIA is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of Health. The NIA is the lead federal agency supporting and conducting biomedical, social, and behavioral research and training related to aging and the diseases and special needs of older people.
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