If You Can’t Take the Heat… Well, You Better Get Used to It
Wise & Well Weekly: Advice from our experts, great reads, and your feedback
Welcome back to your weekly dose of wellness. You’ll find a bounty of informative, compelling health and wellness stories and reader comments below. But first…
At the beginning of July, my wife and I were traveling down the east side of the Sierra Nevadas, camping in remote locales and doing some high-altitude running and hiking. With Yosemite closed due to snow left behind by a record winter, on a whim we took a side road that headed up into the nearby mountains and ended up at a delightful trio of alpine lakes, all surrounded by snow.
We had a glorious hike over and around the patchy snowpacks, then cooked up a high-altitude lunch. Combined with the fresh, cool air, the whole afternoon was a great elixir for the mind and body. We dallied for a good, long time, not wanting to come down out of those mountains. We knew what awaited us back home in Phoenix.
Two days later we descended into the wall of heat amid what became a record-setting, epic heat wave.
It’s been above 110° every day since and above 115° on many of those days. For the sake of our health, we rarely leave air-conditioned spaces, and when we do, the brutal heat saps all energy faster than you can say “It’s so hot, the Good Humor Man had to have a liquidation sale.” Yet staying indoors all day long is mentally demoralizing. And yet we are fortunate. We have AC. We don’t work outdoors.
Many people are not so fortunate, and heat waves are really, really bad for human health, not to mention being outright deadly.
And so…
With this stark reminder of just how fragile life is on this rapidly warming world, the Wise & Well writing team — physicians, research scientists, mental health experts and journalists — has been putting together a phenomenal special report on Heat and Health. I’ll bet my 19-year-old air conditioner that at least one of the more than a dozen articles to post through early August will be of interest.
Here are two of the initial articles:
Why Extreme Heat Kills So Quickly
Humans evolved to survive in a pretty narrow temperature range. When the body exceeds that range, it starts to shut down. Death can follow quickly, sometimes horrifically. The writer wishes she understood this better when she took a fateful hike recently on a hot summer day. Find out what she’s since learned reporting on the science of heat stroke and heat exhaustion, and what you need to know about this deadly force of nature.
— By Kathleen Murphy
Exercising in the Heat: Myths and Emerging Realities
Some people just can’t take the heat, especially during exercise. But heat affects people differently depending on age and sex. And the science on these differences is only half-baked — most of the foundational research was done on men. This health coach, nurse practitioner and runner sorts fact from fiction to understand how hot weather affects casual and elite athletes alike, and what each individual needs to know to stay safe out there.
— By Elizabeth Knight, PhD
Check out the special report page for more.
YOUR INSIGHTS
Reader comments on recent Wise & Well stories:
“I grew up in the mountains and rarely have thought to the water. Now I live a 10-minute walk from the beach. I will never underestimate the importance of water again.”
—Kirstin Bebell, re: Why Blue Space is Better Than Green Space by Catherine Sanderson
“The debate between weekend warrior and daily exercise has always intrigued me. This post provides valuable insights into the pros and cons of each approach. As someone with a busy schedule, it’s reassuring to know that weekend workouts can still be beneficial. Time to find the right balance!”
—Vineet Pal Singh re: Weekend Warrior vs. Daily Exercise: Does it Matter? by Robert Roy Britt
“ I’ve recently changed my diet and I didn’t know how much a difference it would make. I used to use food as a comfort and never realized that it wouldn’t actually help. Healthier diet has definitely made a difference.”
—Jenkoman, re: Is Your Diet Causing Your Anxiety? by Brent R. Stockwell, Ph.D.
HEALTHY READING
A selection of this week’s other informative and insightful articles:
Could a Testosterone Supplement Make You a Republican?
Are Republican men more manly? In certain cases, a study found, testosterone supplements led some men to express more support for Republican candidates. Some media have extrapolated the findings to suggest that Republican men are more manly. This scientist/writer debunks the BS while offering an enjoyable exploration of the true effects of testosterone, and whether anyone with low-T really needs more of it.
—By Sam Westreich, PhD
How to Reduce the Risk of Cognitive Decline After Surgery
Surgery can lead to reduced mental capacity — postoperative decline, especially among older patients. If you’re going under the knife — for any reason — here’s what you’ll want to know.
—By Annie Foley
Is Colorblindness a Disability… or Just a Nuisance?
Color vision deficiency, as experts call the condition of being colorblind, is hereditary and cannot be prevented. And most people learn to live with it. But the rest of the world could help, by such simple acts as not using subtle colors to distinguish items in a chart, for example.
—By Gail Post, Ph.D.
Why Diabetes and Weight-Loss Drugs Sometimes Fail
Newer medications marketed for diabetes, which include semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro), lead to weight loss for many people. But if a person does not improve their diet and exercise habits as they start one of these drugs, they may experience more severe and unwanted side effects for longer periods of time. This dietician explains the science and offers practical suggestions for anyone taking these meds.
—By Mandy Willig, PhD, RD
RANDOM BIT OF WISDOM
“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”
― Albert Einstein
If you like what you see, please follow Wise & Well and/or subscribe to this newsletter. Meanwhile, I hope we’ve helped you make tomorrow a little better than today. — Rob
