Post by Saturn on Feb 21, 2017 11:12:15 GMT -6
Warm weather is coming, even if some of you insist that it's still cold. (I was wearing short sleeves yesterday! It was 44 F, which is practically balmy if you ask me.) So I thought that, in early preparation for the sun, I should give some info on being ready for warm weather.
Even if you aren't in a survival situation, the main risks that you could ever have to worry about in the summer would be sunburn, dehydration, and heat stroke. For the most part, you won't have to worry about it, but it's always great to be prepared.
So obviously, sunburn is a big one. No one likes sunburn, and people have spread it like wildfire that it makes you more likely to get skin cancer. (Which is true. I don't need to stress about it since I think we all know how bad cancer is by now.) It's also been told that some people (white people, people with freckles, etc) burn worse than others, and are more prone to these side effects.
For some reason, though, people keep getting burnt. So I'm gonna tell you what to do to avoid getting burned, and what to do if you get burned anyhow.
Avoiding the sun certainly helps, but you can still get burned even on a cloudy day. (I know this from experience.) The best thing to do is to wear sunscreen, but you have to know what to get.
I'm not gonna name any brands, but I'll tell you this: the sunscreen that you buy has to have zinc oxide, 3 percent avobenzone, or Mexoryl SX. Otherwise, it's not gonna help you too much.
Don't be fooled by SPF numbers, either! SPF 15 gives 94% of UVB rays, SPF 30 blocks 97%, and SPF 45 blocks 98%. Anything higher than that is just ridiculous- nothing gives you total immunity to the sun's rays.
If even after following my advice, you manage to get burned, you're going to want to treat your burn somehow. As a general rule of thumb, do not use oil-based substances, like Vaseline. That will block your pores, preventing heat and sweat from escaping, and may actually lead to infection.
The best advice I can give you is that you should first cool the skin with water (make sure the water isn't unreasonably cold), and afterward apply menthol, camphor, or aloe creams/ointments to soothe and moisturize the location.
Dehydration is something I have first-hand experience with (because I'm literal garbage and do not know how to be healthy). Although it is not exclusive to summer months, it is especially prevalent due to all the sweating you'll inadvertently do. Since, you know, you can't really stop yourself from sweating and all that. Plus exercise, and breathing, and yeah, you're gonna lose a lot of water.
So dehydration, by definition, is losing more water than you're intaking. So obviously, not good. When you're dehydrated, you'll also find that you're more irritable, and you might get dizzy, and your vision might blacken when you rise too quickly or expend too much energy (yeah, that doesn't happen for no reason, buddy). There are a lot of other things (inability to sweat, actually fainting), but you'll generally be weaker. You're closer to death than the average person, congratulations.
Being dehydrated for long periods of time can cause lots of health complications in your future, like kidney failure, seizures, and other great things, and you'll be more prone to heat injury on top of all that.
It's pretty obvious that drinking enough is important. If you aren't crazy for water (or it's unclean in your area) you can drink pretty much anything else. It's best to avoid alcohols or carbonated beverages (sodas) since those usually dehydrate you, but if it's all you have available, then you may as well go for it. (Also, warmer/lukewarm beverages are typically easier on the stomach than cold ones. Just to let you know.)
Heat stroke can be fatal. Not sure how many of you knew that already, but you can die pretty easily from that. It can cause brain damage even if it doesn't kill you.
Some obvious symptoms include headaches, dizziness, and even fainting. Weak muscles and shaking may also be common, and more often than not, the person will also be suffering from dehydration (and therefore not be sweating). They may also be nauseous or vomit. (It's altogether a bad time.)
Heat stroke is legitimately known as a medical emergency, and you are supposed to call 911, or immediately take a person to a hospital if someone nearby you is having a heat stroke. Until someone who is actually qualified to treat that kind of stuff comes, here's the gist of what you have to do:
- Get that person out of the sun and heat. It's practically common sense, but it's best to get the person into the shade. Be careful when you do it- people suffering from heat stroke can spiral into seizures, in which case it's best not to hold a person down (just keep them from hurting themselves//clear the area around them). Remove whatever layers of clothing you can.
- Make sure the person stays cool and hydrated. If they can't drink, don't force it. But you can keep their skin cool with a cool, damp cloth. Some places to keep cool are the armpits, groin, neck, and back, because these areas are rich with blood vessels close to the skin, so this may help with keeping them cool. A cool (not too cold) bath would also help keep the person's body temperature down.
Again, make sure to get the person to a hospital as fast as possible, as not doing so could be fatal.
That's probably not the happiest note to end on, but I can't think of anything else to cover. If you have any questions that you think would be beneficial for others (even if it isn't a question that you personally have) feel free to ask, and I will do my best to inform you.
Even if you aren't in a survival situation, the main risks that you could ever have to worry about in the summer would be sunburn, dehydration, and heat stroke. For the most part, you won't have to worry about it, but it's always great to be prepared.
So obviously, sunburn is a big one. No one likes sunburn, and people have spread it like wildfire that it makes you more likely to get skin cancer. (Which is true. I don't need to stress about it since I think we all know how bad cancer is by now.) It's also been told that some people (white people, people with freckles, etc) burn worse than others, and are more prone to these side effects.
For some reason, though, people keep getting burnt. So I'm gonna tell you what to do to avoid getting burned, and what to do if you get burned anyhow.
Avoiding the sun certainly helps, but you can still get burned even on a cloudy day. (I know this from experience.) The best thing to do is to wear sunscreen, but you have to know what to get.
I'm not gonna name any brands, but I'll tell you this: the sunscreen that you buy has to have zinc oxide, 3 percent avobenzone, or Mexoryl SX. Otherwise, it's not gonna help you too much.
Don't be fooled by SPF numbers, either! SPF 15 gives 94% of UVB rays, SPF 30 blocks 97%, and SPF 45 blocks 98%. Anything higher than that is just ridiculous- nothing gives you total immunity to the sun's rays.
If even after following my advice, you manage to get burned, you're going to want to treat your burn somehow. As a general rule of thumb, do not use oil-based substances, like Vaseline. That will block your pores, preventing heat and sweat from escaping, and may actually lead to infection.
The best advice I can give you is that you should first cool the skin with water (make sure the water isn't unreasonably cold), and afterward apply menthol, camphor, or aloe creams/ointments to soothe and moisturize the location.
Dehydration is something I have first-hand experience with (because I'm literal garbage and do not know how to be healthy). Although it is not exclusive to summer months, it is especially prevalent due to all the sweating you'll inadvertently do. Since, you know, you can't really stop yourself from sweating and all that. Plus exercise, and breathing, and yeah, you're gonna lose a lot of water.
So dehydration, by definition, is losing more water than you're intaking. So obviously, not good. When you're dehydrated, you'll also find that you're more irritable, and you might get dizzy, and your vision might blacken when you rise too quickly or expend too much energy (yeah, that doesn't happen for no reason, buddy). There are a lot of other things (inability to sweat, actually fainting), but you'll generally be weaker. You're closer to death than the average person, congratulations.
Being dehydrated for long periods of time can cause lots of health complications in your future, like kidney failure, seizures, and other great things, and you'll be more prone to heat injury on top of all that.
It's pretty obvious that drinking enough is important. If you aren't crazy for water (or it's unclean in your area) you can drink pretty much anything else. It's best to avoid alcohols or carbonated beverages (sodas) since those usually dehydrate you, but if it's all you have available, then you may as well go for it. (Also, warmer/lukewarm beverages are typically easier on the stomach than cold ones. Just to let you know.)
Heat stroke can be fatal. Not sure how many of you knew that already, but you can die pretty easily from that. It can cause brain damage even if it doesn't kill you.
Some obvious symptoms include headaches, dizziness, and even fainting. Weak muscles and shaking may also be common, and more often than not, the person will also be suffering from dehydration (and therefore not be sweating). They may also be nauseous or vomit. (It's altogether a bad time.)
Heat stroke is legitimately known as a medical emergency, and you are supposed to call 911, or immediately take a person to a hospital if someone nearby you is having a heat stroke. Until someone who is actually qualified to treat that kind of stuff comes, here's the gist of what you have to do:
- Get that person out of the sun and heat. It's practically common sense, but it's best to get the person into the shade. Be careful when you do it- people suffering from heat stroke can spiral into seizures, in which case it's best not to hold a person down (just keep them from hurting themselves//clear the area around them). Remove whatever layers of clothing you can.
- Make sure the person stays cool and hydrated. If they can't drink, don't force it. But you can keep their skin cool with a cool, damp cloth. Some places to keep cool are the armpits, groin, neck, and back, because these areas are rich with blood vessels close to the skin, so this may help with keeping them cool. A cool (not too cold) bath would also help keep the person's body temperature down.
Again, make sure to get the person to a hospital as fast as possible, as not doing so could be fatal.
That's probably not the happiest note to end on, but I can't think of anything else to cover. If you have any questions that you think would be beneficial for others (even if it isn't a question that you personally have) feel free to ask, and I will do my best to inform you.
