It was yet another scorching hot day in Dallas. This has been the hottest summer I can ever remember experiencing. It seems my A/C has to run all day just to keep the home at a livable temperature. I found some great tips to keep you cool over the summer on the UK's DailyMail website that I wanted to share with my readers. If you have any tips not mentioned in the article please leave them below in the comments section so our other readers can take advantage of your knowledge.
- Eat small meals often. The large the meal, the more metabolic heat your body creates breaking down the food. Avoid foods that are high in protein, which increase metabolic heat.
- Run your wrists under a cold tap for five seconds each every couple of hours. Because a main vein passes through this area, it helps cool the blood.
- Take a tepid bath or shower just below body temperature, especially before bedtime. Although a cold shower might sound more tempting, your body generates heat afterwards to compensate for the heat loss.
- Wear lightweight, light-colored cotton clothes. Heat is trapped by synthetic fibers, but cotton absorbs perspiration and its evaporation causes you to feel cooler. The light colors reflect the sun's radiation.
- While you are out, keep the house curtains drawn to stop it from heating up like a greenhouse.
- You may be longing for a cold beer or frozen margarita, but you should avoid alcohol because it dehydrates the body. You are better off with mineral water or low-sugar fizzy drinks. Also, avoid drinks with caffeine such as coffee and colas. These increase the metabolic heat in the body.
- Woman should replace their usual body moisturizer with a cooling aloe vera after sun product to use morning and night. This will help lower your skin temperature.
- Slow down and avoid strenuous activity which will stimulate your body and raise its core temperature. If you must go jogging, do it during the coolest part of the day, which is usually before 7 am.
- Get liquid ice. This re-usable ice wrap is perfect for cooling hot skin. The cloth, pre-soaked in liquid Ice solution, cools instantly when removed from the packet without need for refrigeration
- Get some Mentholatum Migraine ice patches. These soft gel patches- designed to soothe headaches, come into their own during heatwaves as the instantly reduce skin temperature when applied. They can be found in pharmacies.
- Drink Chrysanthemum tea. Practitioners say Chrysanthemum is a cooling herb which clears the head.
- Sleep on a feather down pillow with a cotton pillowcase. Synthetic pillows will retain heat.
- The night before you go out for the day in the sun, roll some damp flannels up and pop them in the freezer. Take them with you in a plastic bag. The, when you start to feel hot, unwrap them and place them over your face.
- Try a Native American herbal remedy called Black Cohosh which has been clinically proven to relieve hot flushes and night sweats in menopausal woman. Recant research suggests it works on the hypothalamus, where it may help regulate body temperature.
- Ditch your comforter and sleep under a sheet instead. Even better, put your sheets ina plastic bag and stick them in the fridge a couple of hours before going to bed. As we fall asleep our body temperature lowers, which is why it is difficult to sleep in hot weather. Cold sheets straight from the fridge should help you sleep better.
- Sit back, close your eyes, and picture snow. Research has shown that the body reacts to these daydreams, reducing its overall temperature.
