heat Archives - Amazing Health Advances

How Extreme Heat Affects the Brain + How to Prevent Any Damage

The AHA! Team — Fri, 24 May 2024 08:06:04 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – In this podcast (episode #508) and blog, I talk about keeping our brains and bodies healthy when it’s extremely hot outside. Although there still needs to be more research on how extreme temperatures affect the brain, they definitely have a negative impact with prolonged periods of heat exposure. Why? Temperature is one the main driver of chemical reactions, so changes in temperature affect the biochemistry of the brain and body. Short bursts of high heat exposure, like having a sauna, are good for you Short bursts of high heat exposure, like having a sauna, are good for you and can even build up your resilience and improve your focus. However, longer periods of extreme heat are potentially problematic as the changes in brain chemistry can cause neurons to either fire too fast or too slowly, sometimes even going “silent”, which can affect how a person thinks, recalls, feels, and sleeps. This, in turn, can make someone more tired, overwhelmed, aggressive, and irritable, and can further drains the energy from the brain and body, making us feel even worse. This can happen to anyone, including our children. If they are exposed to extreme heat, they can become tired irritable, and the weather can affect their concentration, memory, processing, and sleeping patterns. They may also feel more lethargic, flat or depressed. Here are some ways we can all try to keep a ‘cool head’ in the summer heat, improving our mood and memory: Practice extreme temperature contrasts (in a safe environment while listening to your brain and body). This means exposing yourself to high and low temperatures for a limited period to build up your resilience. For example, if you are at the gym, use the sauna or steam room for a few minutes, then take a cold shower or use the cold plunge pool for a few minutes. When possible, keep your home cool, especially at night to help you sleep. Use the AC or fans to do this. Suck on ice when you feel too warm or need to spend some time outside in the heat. Take cold showers for 1-3 minutes when possible. If you can, take an ice bath. If you have access to a pool/lake/river/ocean/swimming area, enjoy some time outdoors in the water, but make sure to wear a lot of sunblock and don’t stay outdoors too long if the temperatures are very high! When it comes to our children, we need to acknowledge how vulnerable they are to extreme temperature changes. We to need think of ways we can keep them cool and safe inside, while making sure they have plenty to do so their mental and physical health isn’t impacted by being indoors for long periods of time. Some ways to do this are: Make sure your children are eating healthy so that the brain gets all the nutrients it needs. But don’t just make them food—get your children involved in preparing their meals! A fun way to do this is to make frozen yogurt together with friends and family. Add frozen berries, bananas, nuts, granola and so on. These are all great foods to help boost their metabolism and blood flow to the brain, and help cool their body temperature down. When you are ready to eat, read a great story together out loud that stimulates your child’s imagination, which in turn helps recharge the brain from the draining heat. In fact, reading a book that’s above your child’s grade level—in a cool room—can help revitalize their brain as it challenges their creativity and imagination. Start a new indoor hobby like painting, wall art, or learning a new language to help keep your children’s brains stimulated and active while indoors. Manage your kids’ time online amid high temperatures. Encourage them to read, play with their toys, build blanket and pillow forts and so on instead of just spending time on social media or watching TV all day. Make sure their sleeping environment is as cool as possible, so that they get enough rest. If they want to play, find places that have indoor play areas (such as indoor trampoline parks), or places that offer indoor sports (like basketball). You can even take them to the gym with you if they have a kid-friendly area or pool. For more on keeping cool and staying healthy in extreme heat conditions, listen to my podcast (episode #508). Podcast Highlights 0:15 Extreme temperatures & the brain 1:00 What extreme heat can do to the brain & body 1:28 Ways to keep cool during a heat wave 4:30 What happens in the brain when we are exposed to high temperatures for long periods of time 7:00 Ways you & your children can cool down in the summertime 10:29 How to keep your child’s brain stimulated while spending time indoors This podcast and blog are for educational purposes only and are not intended as medical advice. We always encourage each person to make the decision that seems best for their situation with the guidance of a medical professional. To read the original article click here.

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Do Heat and UV Rays Kill COVID-19?

AHA Publisher — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 07:00:34 +0000

Dr. Don Colbert – While the COVID-19 pandemic continues, researchers are looking for many different ways to kill the virus on surfaces and materials, and in the human body. One area of focus is UV rays and heat. Can high temperatures and UV kill COVID-19? Here’s the current research on UV rays, the types, environmental temperatures, and high heat against COVID-19. The Studies: Does UV Kill COVID-19? UV light is showing promise in the fight against COVID-19. The Solid State Lighting and Energy Electronics Center of UC Santa Barbara is studying the effects of UV light on COVID-19. In fact, this department and member companies are developing UV LEDs to decontaminate surfaces. They believe UV LEDs can provide disinfection to personal protective equipment and medical surfaces such as floors, tables, devices, and HVAC systems in hospitals. Another company, called Seoul Semiconductor is reporting “99.9% sterilization” of COVID-19 in just 30 seconds using their UV LED products. They specifically manufacture UV LED lamps used to sterilize the interiors of unoccupied cars. There is promise with these applications! How UV Kills COVID-19 However, not all UV rays are effective. UV-A and UV-B, the length and type of UV rays we receive from the sun, do not appear to be effective against COVID-19. UV-C, which can be utilized from specific UV LED lamps, is effective. However, even within the UV-C category, the waves must be the right length, strength, and applied for the right amount of time, depending on the surface being decontaminated. The UV-C rays must be in 260-285 nm wavelength range. Unfortunately, they are harmful to people. Just as they kill and disrupt viruses by damaging their DNA and RNA, they can harm our cells as well when applied to our skin. Even brief exposure can cause skin burns and eye damage (1). One study compared UV-C applied to the material of an N-95 mask and stainless steel. It took approximately 12 minutes for the virus to become completely undetectable on the stainless steel, and about 1 hour for the mask. The lamps were placed just 20 inches from the surfaces. This study demonstrates the need for accurate time, distance and wavelength for different materials (2). And while the research continues, it’s going at a slow pace right now in order to minimize human contact and the spreading of COVID-19 (3, 4). Can the Sun’s Heat and UV Kill COVID-19? It’s worth discussing the sun’s heat, and weather in general with the spread of COVID-19. With other infectious diseases, weather and temperature often play a factor in the spread. For example, SARS increased with a sharp change in environmental temperature (5, 6). And, influenza transmission is often increased in cold, dry air, with low UV radiation (7, 8). At least one study has been published on the changing seasonal temperatures and COVID-19 spread in China. So far, neither temperature nor UV radiation from the sun has made a difference. This may be due to the time of year and temperatures logged so far during the pandemic, or it could point to the Earth’s environmental temperatures and UV-exposure as ineffective in altering the spread of COVID-19 (9). Do Other Heat Sources Kill COVID-19? When it comes to heat above our earthly temperatures, it is very effective against viruses and COVID-19 in a relatively short amount of time. In fact, it appears that COVID-19 is more susceptible to heat than SARS. What kind of heat is required? High heat, above our normal environmental temperatures, is needed to kill the virus in less than a day. But, it’s still not as high as you might think. Interestingly, some recent tests on COVID-19 found that the virus in culture medium became undetectable after only 5 minutes at only 158°F (70°C). As temperatures were reduced, the time required to irradicate the virus increased. At 132°F (56°C), 30 minutes is required. At 98.6°F (37°C), 2 days is required. And at 71.6°F (22°C), 2 weeks is required (9). Again, this heat is specific for the virus in culture medium and surfaces…not for killing the virus within the human body. Once there, it can replicate faster than it’s killed until the immune system finds a way to kill it. Still, high heat can be used to disinfect surfaces (although it can also harm specific surfaces and fabrics), and higher summer heat may help us slow it in general. Can Room Temperature Kill COVID-19? While room temperature does not really kill COVID-19, the virus does “die off” after a while on surfaces when left at room temperature. Researchers from Hong Kong have found when left on surfaces at room temperature and 65% relative humidity, it becomes undetectable after: 3 hours on regular paper and tissue 2 days on cloth and paper money at least 7 days on surgical masks, plastic, and stainless steel What’s more, colder temperatures do help preserve it and keep it infectious (10). Bottom Line There is a lot of promise with using UV-C rays to disinfect medical equipment, and potentially housewares without damaging the surfaces and materials. However, UV rays from the sun (UV-A and UV-B) do not seem to be effective to kill COVID-19. And, while studies are suggesting that high heat kills COVID-19, the temperature needs to be above 130 °F to be effective and efficient, and care must be taken to not compromise materials. Summer temperatures may slow the virus spread as the heat around 100 °F will kill the virus quicker on surfaces as long as they are not re-infected. Still, there are many benefits to being outside including boosting your immune system and mood, so don’t give up on the sun’s UV-rays and outdoor activity (with social distancing) completely. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Colbert click here.

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