3 tips for preventing heat stroke

Seattle experienced record high temperatures in June 2021. AP Photo/John Froschauer As a primary care physician who often treats patients with heat-related illnesses, I know all too well how heat waves create spikes in hospitalizations and deaths related to “severe nonexertional hyperthermia,” or what most people call “heat stroke.” Heat stroke is when a person’s core body temperature rises too high – often more than 104 F (40 C) – because high environmental temperatures and humidity prevent the body from cooling itself through sweating and breathing. As heat stroke develops, a patient experiences rapid heart rate, ragged breathing, dizziness, nausea, muscle cramps and confusion. Eventually the patient may lose consciousness entirely. Without medical intervention, heat stroke is often fatal. On average, about 658 Americans die each year from heat stroke, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Victims of heat stroke can be any age, but most often it strikes the elderly – particularly those over the age of 70 – because our bodies’ ability to cool off declines with age. Additionally, many common medications used to control blood pressure, seizures and psychological disorders reduce a person’s ability to regulate temperature. Those risks increase even more when an...