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Are you stuck on a sweltering summer day without air conditioning? Or perhaps in the current financial climate you would like to use the air conditioner unit a little less and save money on your electricity bill. These handy tips will help you to cool down before the heat becomes overwhelming.
Wet your wrists with cold water. Use a piece of ice wrapped in a face cloth, continue even after the coolness wears off. The water will cool down the blood flowing through your veins and arteries. Studies show that this will reduce your core body temperature by as much as 3°F for up to one hour! Water vapour produced by sweating takes heat away from your body if it is exposed to air and allowed to evaporate. The best thing to do is to put your sweaty self in the path of a cool breeze or fan. Drink water, even if you are not thirsty! If you are sweating a lot, it is actually healthier to drink something with salt or other electrolytes in it to replenish the lost salt as well as the lost fluid, energy drinks like Gatorade are good for this. Do not drink alcohol, it acts as a diuretic making you urinate more often promoting dehydration. Avoid direct sunlight. If you must go outside, go in the morning or evening. Wear clothes that cover up your body. A wide-brimmed hat is good with light-weight, loose-fitting cotton clothing. Go downstairs. Warm air is less dense than cooler air so it ends up layered on top of the downward moving cooler air. Prepare your home against the heat. In the evening, open windows and use fans to create a cross-breeze, circulating cooler evening/night air through the rooms. As soon as the sun hits the building the next morning, close all windows, blinds, and curtains, and keep doors and windows closed throughout the day until it is cooler outside than it is inside. Then you can open everything up again and cool off ready for the next day. Get wet! Take a cool shower or bath. Wet your hair. Fill a basin with water and sit with your feet in it. Go swimming in a pool. Use a wet cloth to keep your skin cool. Put a wet bandana around your neck. Fill a spray bottle or squirt gun with water and spritz yourself. Soak a t-shirt with water, wring it out, put it on and sit in a lawn chair (or other chair that lets air through to you) in front of a fan or breeze. Eat less. Smaller meals with less protein will reduce metabolic heat. Whatever you do eat should be cool and not require heat to be prepared (e.g. salads, sandwiches, etc.) Try a few minty products to cool your skin: put on lotion with peppermint (avoid your face and eyes); shower with peppermint soap; use a minty foot soak. Mint refreshes the skin and leaves a nice cooling sensation. Take a glass and fill it almost to the brim with ice cubes. Then hold it up to your mouth and blow gently into the cup. The ice causes the air you are blowing into the cup to cool down drastically, and since the air only has one way out of the cup the cold air is forced straight up into your face. Take off your shoes or hat while indoors! Much of the body's heat is released through the soles of the feet, the palms of the hands, and the scalp. Keeping these areas cool makes a surprising difference. Stock your freezer with flavoured ice treats. Freeze a bag of chopped fruit such as watermelon or pineapple. Cooling down can be a tasty experience too! Related articles
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