With umbrellas, long-sleeved t-shirts to protect themselves from the sun’s rays and looking for liquid to cool off, this is what is observed in different sectors of the city of Valledupar, where the high temperatures, which have reached 39 degrees, as a consequence of the El Phenomenon Boy, they have the vallenatos overwhelmed.
For this reason, the Eduardo Arredondo Daza Hospital promotes the ‘Protect Your Child’ campaign, with which they seek to protect and care for the health of the community, with the promotion of healthy habits and the need to spend the night in cool places with good ventilation.
Among the activities promoted with this campaign are offering information to raise awareness in the community about healthy practices that help prevent or reduce the impact of heat waves.
“Extreme heat can have serious consequences for health, since our body is subjected to greater effort to maintain a normal body temperature.
It is important to highlight that heat affects people differently, with the most vulnerable being older adults, children, especially those under 4 years of age, people with chronic diseases who receive treatment with certain medications, people with disability, pregnant women and people with obesity or overweight” explained José Luis Corzo Guerra, head of Health Promotion and Maintenance at HEAD.
Heat can trigger symptoms such as dizziness and nausea, cramps, increased body temperature, red, hot and dry skin, fast and strong pulse, headache, dehydration, low blood pressure, fainting and exhaustion. In the event of any discomfort caused by the heat, Corzo Guerra recommends “interrupting the activity carried out and looking for a cool place, in addition to requesting medical assistance.”
Likewise, to prevent the effects of high temperatures, the official suggests taking into account the following recommendations: “drink enough water and avoid sugary drinks, use sunscreen, dress in light and light-colored clothing, eat fresh and light foods, Avoid direct exposure to the sun between 11:00 am and 5:00 pm.”
