Extreme high temperatures lead to frequent heat stroke incidents. How can we prevent heat stroke in this hot summer?

As the 2024 college entrance examination comes to an end, the annual summer travel peak is about to arrive, but in addition to the excitement, a series of unexpected events have also sounded the alarm for tourists who are eager to try.

On June 10, the famous singer Eason Chan fainted due to heat stroke shock while playing tennis, causing his chin to hit the ground and injure him. He needed more than 30 stitches in total.

What is even more alarming is that on June 9, also during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, a girl unfortunately died of heatstroke in Jiulianjian, on the border of Nanjing and Zhenjiang.

Jiulianjian is located at the intersection of Liuhe District of Nanjing and Dantu District of Zhenjiang, close to the south bank of the Yangtze River. The biggest feature here is the unique nine-step landform. The mountain here is not high, with the highest point only 142 meters above sea level, but from here you can overlook the Yangtze River and the scenery on both sides, so it has become an Internet celebrity hiking spot around Nanjing.

However, the weather was hot that day and the girl suffered from heatstroke at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, when it was the hottest time. Although she was rescued by tourists and 120 emergency personnel, she was still unable to be saved. It is really a pity.

As the country enters summer, high temperatures will occur repeatedly. Today we will tell you some practical tips on how to prevent heat stroke.

Heatstroke and the heat stroke we often hear about are the same thing, but heat stroke is more serious and is a serious condition after heatstroke.

Heat stroke is the biggest threat to health in summer. Unlike normal people who sweat profusely in high temperatures, people with heat stroke have dry and red skin and no sweat. The heat in the body cannot be dissipated, causing the core body temperature to continue to rise. The body temperature of people with heat stroke usually reaches above 40°C, and in severe cases it can reach 41-42°C. Under such high temperature conditions, people begin to have headaches, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, and may then become confused and comatose. The abnormal temperature regulation mechanism causes people to breathe rapidly, have a rapid pulse, muscle cramps, fatigue, and lose the ability to move. At this time, they can only rely on other people for rescue.

Recently, the highest temperature in northern my country and other places has continued to approach 40 degrees Celsius. In July and August, after entering the hottest period in southern my country, the maximum daily temperature in large areas will be around 40 degrees Celsius. As UN Secretary-General Guterres said, we have entered the "global boiling era", and we need to pay close attention to the risk of heat stroke in summer.

In extremely hot weather, if you want to engage in outdoor activities, you should pay special attention to preventing heat stroke. Here are three of the most critical suggestions I have summarized:

(1) Choose the right time. Try to avoid outdoor exercise during the hot period between 12:00 and 15:00. It is best to choose the relatively cool time in the morning or evening. Even if you have outdoor activities at noon, try to reduce the time to less than 15 minutes to half an hour.

(2) Pay attention to sun protection measures, wear loose, breathable, light-colored sportswear, and a wide-brimmed sun hat or straw hat. Under direct sunlight, the body's perceived temperature will rise by at least 5-10 degrees Celsius, so in an environment of 38 degrees Celsius, the perceived temperature without any shelter may reach 43-48 degrees Celsius;

(3) Increase your water intake appropriately. You can choose drinks containing electrolytes. As long as the body can still sweat moderately, the body's ability to regulate body temperature has not been lost.

Many people regard rainstorms, hail, strong winds, tornadoes, typhoons, etc. as disaster weather, and do not take high temperature weather seriously. However, according to the China Meteorological Administration's "Regulations on Meteorological Disaster Prevention" and other regulations, high temperature weather is also disastrous weather. The Meteorological Administration will issue yellow, orange and red high temperature warnings according to the degree of high temperature. When the high temperature warning signal is issued, if your area belongs to the warning area, you must pay close attention to the risk of heat stroke.

Under high temperature conditions, children, the elderly, pregnant women, people with weak constitutions, obese people, outdoor workers, athletes, etc. are more likely to suffer from heat stroke, so they need to be vigilant and take appropriate preventive measures.

This article is a work supported by the Science Popularization China Creation Cultivation Program

Author: Wei Ke, Researcher at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Review | Zhang Hongliang, deputy chief physician, Department of Emergency Medicine, Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University

Produced by | Science Popularization Department of China Association for Science and Technology

Producer | China Science and Technology Press Co., Ltd., Beijing Zhongke Xinghe Culture Media Co., Ltd.