Summer may be ending, but the high temperatures are still present in many areas of the country. And with heat and outdoor activities comes heat-related illness and injury, which can be common in yourself or your children. 

When you experience any type of heat illness, it is something you won't ever forget and something you won't want to repeat. So, to help prevent heat illness and injury, here are some tips to help prevent them from occurring, recognize them when they do, and get a helpful treatment.

Prevent Heat Illness

Prevention is always the best option, especially with heat illness. And to keep yourself safe, stay hydrated when you are working or playing outside or are participating in any physically exerting activity that makes you sweat. 

It is recommended you drink water equivalent to half your weight in ounces. So, for example, if you weigh 180 pounds, you should drink at least 90 ounces of water each day. But when you are in the sunshine and heat, you should increase this. Additionally, stay out of the sun when you can. The sun's rays will speed up your body's water loss, so screen yourself by hanging out in the shade.

Know What to Look For

A heat-related illness can take several forms, such as a heat rash, sunburn, and dehydration, and can progress into heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke. Some of the symptoms of dehydration are fatigue, headache, increased thirst, and dry skin. 

However, if you begin to get heat exhaustion, your skin will be pale and feel cold and clammy. You will also begin to feel nauseous or throw up, have muscle cramps, feel dizzy, or even pass out. With heat stroke, your skin will feel hot, your heart rate will be fast, and your body can have a temperature of up to 103 degrees F.

Quick and Timely Treatments

When you realize you are dehydrated, getting your body cool and hydrated as soon as possible is important. Heat illness that is allowed to continue for any length of time can lead to further health complications and sometimes death. 

Slowly sip cold water, which is more easily absorbed through your stomach than warm water. If you drink water too quickly, it can pass through your stomach, and much of it will end up getting expelled as urine. And keep in mind it can take anywhere from 5 to 120 minutes for water you drink to fully absorb into your bloodstream so it can spread throughout your body's tissues.

As another option, you can visit your doctor or a staff member at a local IV hydration therapy clinic to administer your body with electrolyte fluids through an IV right into your bloodstream to hydrate your body more quickly and completely. An IV solution of water mixed with some saline or sugar will replenish what your body needs and more quickly, as it is put directly into your bloodstream. So, instead of waiting up to two hours for your body to become hydrated, you will hydrate quickly with the right additives in the water to replace your body's needed electrolytes.

During hydration therapy, your IV line will be watched closely by one of the trained staff at the clinic or your doctor's office. They will make sure the IV drip is delivered into your bloodstream at a slow and steady rate so your body can benefit fully from the treatment and you can get back to feeling better more quickly. Once your body is restored with its needed water, any feelings of tiredness, headache, joint aches, and overall body malaise will improve.