Avoid heat-related dangers
Q:Living in Arizona, I am worried about the coming summer’s heat waves and how they can affect my health – and my family’s. Am I being overly concerned?
– Derrick T., Phoenix
Last summer, Phoenix experienced 31 days of 110-degree-plus daytime temperatures and 19 nights when it never went below 90. And Phoenix wasn’t the only area that got hit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that, across the country, there was an alarming increase in folks going to the emergency room for heat-related illnesses.
The three main categories of heat-related distress are heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Heat cramps happen when muscles become dehydrated. They’re your first clue that you need to find a cool location and drink plenty of water (or a fluid with electrolytes). Heat exhaustion is signaled by heavy sweating, a rapid heartbeat and dizziness. Stop all activity, drink water or a caffeine-free, electrolyte-containing sports drink, and call a doctor if you feel progressively worse or if symptoms don’t go away in an hour. Heat stroke requires immediate medical attention. It can cause confusion, dry skin, balance problems and even loss of consciousness. Get this person to an ER. If there is no relief from extreme heat, it can lead to brain injury, cardiovascular and breathing problems, and death.
To help everyone avoid heat-related risks, the CDC and the National Weather Service have launched three online tools that can help keep you safe. The HeatRisk Forecast Tool lets you know if your area is going to experience potentially life-threatening heat; the HeatRisk Dashboard adds info on things like air quality, which can make heat-related problems worse. And there’s the CDC clinical guidance section. It’s “for doctors,” but it’s got a lot of good info for everyone. For example, it lets you know if
A:you are taking medicines that interfere with your body’s ability to regulate its temperature, making you more vulnerable to heat-related illnesses.
My doctor says I have IBS. Is there any new info on controlling digestive symptoms?
– Kelly P., Springfield, Illinois
A: IBS – irritable bowel syndrome – is a cluster of symptoms such as gut pain, diarrhea, and constipation that are caused by problems with gut-brain axis, a two-way system that allows your intestinal microbiome to influence your mood and thinking and your brain’s signaling to affect digestion.
It’s estimated about 12% of folks in the U.S. contend with IBS. It may be related to stress or a severe infection, but it is often difficult to know why it happens. Fortunately, two new studies offer some clarity about how to best handle the symptoms.
A study in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology found that folks who followed what is called the FODMAPs diet and those on a low-carb diet saw a significant reduction in symptom severity compared to those getting bestcase medical care. The FODMAPs diet eliminates hard-to-digest fermentable vegetables like onions, broccoli and Jerusalem artichokes. Fruits like blueberries and watermelon are also avoided, as are wheat and beans. All simple sugars and lactose (in dairy) are also off the table. The low-carb dietary approach lets you eat low-fructose vegetables like leafy greens, tomatoes, potatoes, rice and quinoa.
The other study explores a new approach to handling IBS that develops after an infection. Researchers used a personalized combination of antibiotics, prebiotics and probiotics to normalize the gut microbiome after analyzing each participant’s gut bacteria to see what was out of whack. Around 92% of the folks on a personalized plan saw symptoms improve and almost 40% had total remission.
If you’re contending with IBS, talk to your gastroenterologist about getting an analysis of your gut biome and discuss which pre – and probiotics may help you, as well as how to begin experimenting with the FODMAPs or lowcarb diet to see what foods you cannot – and can – tolerate.
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