Heed the warnings
July 20, 2011 (Wednesday)
On Tuesday morning around 7:30 I checked with my weather site on the internet and it said the temperature was 87, and felt like 104. Before the day was over, the heat index had risen to 117.
An Associated Press article says that if you are over 65 and not worried about the heat, you should be, because our bodies don’t talk to us as clearly after that age. The article said that an older body contains far less water than a younger one, but older brains can’t sense temperature changes as well and don’t recognize thirst as easily.
Every year 1,000 U.S. citizens die from the effects of blistering summer heat. That’s something to think about, especially if you are an older person, because 40% of those deaths are of people 65 and older.
Many people over 65 don’t think the warnings apply to them, because they don’t think they’re “old.” When warnings are issued for the elderly, some older people say “I don’t pay too much attention to those warnings; I don’t feel they apply to me.”
Doctors warn that any older adult has reduced reserve and is more likely to become dehydrated than younger people. We older folks are warned about extreme heat and advised to drink plenty of water on very hot days, avoid outdoor activities and stay inside with air conditioning. Sounds like good advice.