Germany is currently experiencing temperatures of up to 30 degrees, sometimes even higher. In order not to suffer from the heat even further, you should definitely avoid these common mistakesIn hot weather you should be particularly careful with yourself and those around you and avoid the following mistakes.
1. Mistake in the heat: Drink ice-cold drinks
Again and again you come across the advice to avoid cold drinks in summer. The reasoning goes that the body has to actively heat up cold drinks, which leads to even more sweating. But that’s a myth. The German Society for Nutrition explains that drinks are heated in the gastrointestinal tract, but this happens passively via the ambient temperature. The body does not have to make any additional effort here.
You don’t have to avoid cold drinks in summer, but you should avoid ice-cold ones. These can lead to stomach cramps. And abdominal pain can hinder the necessary fluid intake.
2. Use air conditioning
Air conditioning is bad for the environment. Air conditioning provides welcome cooling – whether in the car or at home. Why you still shouldn’t use an air conditioner or even buy a new one:
- Large differences in temperature put a strain on the circulation: If it is well over 30 degrees outside and only a little over 20 degrees inside, this is a great strain on the body. The result: circulatory problems, colds or conjunctivitis.
- Air conditioning systems are real energy guzzlers. Even a small cooling system with, for example, 880 watts uses more electricity than 100 energy-saving lamps. In a car, the air conditioning system is, next to the engine, the largest fuel consumer, writes the Federal Environment Agency.
- The refrigerants found in many air conditioning systems are also problematic. Some of the products have a greenhouse effect – and therefore place additional strain on the climate.
The good news: Cooling also works without the power guzzler:
3. Drinking alcohol can be a big mistake in the heat
A cold beer or a refreshing cocktail at the end of the day? This is also not recommended – and not just because the drinks are too cold. Alcohol and heat don’t mix particularly well:
- At high temperatures, alcohol works faster and more intensely. Especially if you drink alcoholic beverages to quench your thirst, you can quickly consume too much alcohol. This leads to unwanted side effects such as circulatory problems more quickly.
- In the heat we lose a lot of water through sweating. Alcohol also removes water and minerals from the body. The risk of heat strokes is increasing, warns the Federal Center for Health Education (BZgA).
Read more: Heatwaves: How hot is too hot for humans?
4. Taking a cold shower is a heat mistake
Another mistake that many people make when it’s hot: taking a cold shower. A cold shower is initially quite refreshing and also saves energy. However, it doesn’t make much sense when it’s very hot – because one of the body’s own mechanisms causes us to sweat:
The cold shower reduces body temperature. This triggers a counter-reaction in the body: the pores in the skin and vessels contract to keep the heat in the body. In addition, the body increases the temperature to get back to 36 to 37 degrees Celsius. The result: you sweat even more than before. A shower with lukewarm water is more helpful – for the sake of the environment and your wallet, the hot water flows through an energy-saving shower head.
5. Leave electrical devices in the sun
No matter whether outdoors or in the car: You should not leave electronic devices such as smartphones or navigation systems in the sun for long periods of time – they cannot tolerate high temperatures. Depending on how hot it is, in the worst case scenario the battery fluid could leak. Therefore, always store sensitive devices in the shade.
Animals and plants also suffer from the heat, please also read: Animals suffer from the heat and need your help and The trees are dying of thirst – it’s that easy to help them!
6. Drinking too much coffee
You should also be careful with coffee: the caffeine it contains has a diuretic effect. Under normal circumstances this is not a problem and the body compensates for it. However, since we already lose a lot of water due to sweating in the heat, it is advisable to be a little more careful in summer. You don’t have to give up coffee completely, but it is advisable to drink a little less coffee than usual.
7. Stay indoors only
When it’s hot, would you rather stay at home and move as little as possible instead of sweating outside? That’s not a good idea either, because the body then slows down the circulation – so much so that even low levels of stress quickly overwhelm it. In order to stay fit even in high temperatures, you should still get enough exercise, for example with short walks in the park or with (lighter) sports sessions at cooler times of the day, as sports medicine specialist Prof. Ingo Froböse recommends.
Read more on Techzle\.com:
- What to do in the heat? The best tips for enduring the heat wave
- Make your own ice cream without an ice cream maker: 5 summer recipes
- Animals suffer in the heat: Here’s how you can help
Independent journalism needs people who stand behind it – including in Google searches. Now send a signal for more sustainability and → Save Utopia as a preferred source.
** marked with ** or orange underlined Links to sources of supply are partly partner links: If you buy here, you are actively supporting Techzle\.com, because we then receive a small part of the sales proceeds. More info.