Heat Stroke
Definition:
Heatstroke is a condition caused by your body overheating, usually as a result of prolonged exposure to or physical exertion in high temperatures. This most serious form of heat injury, heatstroke can occur if your body temperature rises to 104 F (40 C) or higher.
Heatstroke requires emergency treatment. Untreated heatstroke can quickly damage your brain, heart, kidneys and muscles. The damage worsens the longer treatment is delayed, increasing your risk of serious complications or death.
Signs & Symptoms:
High body temperature. A body temperature of 104 F (40 C) or higher is the main sign of heatstroke.
Altered mental state or behavior. …
Alteration in sweating. …
Nausea and vomiting. …
Flushed skin. …
Rapid breathing. …
Racing heart rate. …
Headache.
Cause:
Working or exercising in hot conditions or weather without drinking enough fluids is the main cause of heat stroke. You can get heat stroke by not replacing lost fluids over days or weeks, or you can bring it on in a few hours by exercising strenuously on a hot day without drinking plenty of liquids first.
Liquids help to cool us down by allowing the body to produce sweat. However, liquids are also necessary for bodily functions, such as keeping up blood pressure. You can lose large amounts of body fluid in the form of sweat without noticing any effects, but at a certain point the body will reserve the remaining fluid for vital functions and stop sweating. The body’s core temperature then shoots up, and cells start dying.
Sweat evaporates more rapidly in dry weather, cooling the body more efficiently than in humid weather. When working in humid conditions, the core temperature rises more rapidly. This is why weather forecasts add a humidity factor or heat index to represent how you will actually feel outdoors.
How To Cure:
- Onion Juice
This is one of the best remedies for treating a heat stroke. Lot of Ayurvedic practitioners suggest that this should be the first thing that you must reach out for. Applying onion juice behind the ears and on your chest can help bring down your body temperature. For therapeutic purposes onion juice is more desirable, but you can roast some raw onions with cumin and honey and have it. Raw onions in chutneys or salads can also cool your system.
- Tamarind Drink
Tamarind is rich in vitamins, minerals and electrolytes. Soak some tamarind in boiling water. Strain it and drink it with a pinch of sugar. This decoction lowers your body temperature. Tamarind juice also acts as a mild laxative and helps in treating stomach disorders.
- Aam Panna
Aam Panna refreshing drink that doubles up as a health tonic. It is made with raw mangoes and spices that cool your body. This drink should be consumed at least two to three times in a day. Aam panna is enriched with cooling spices like cumin, fennel, pepper and kala namak which provides both energy and electrolytes,
