Five More Ways to Win the Battle Against Heatstroke

Nothing in this article is intended to discourage anyone who needs emergency medical attention from getting it, but here are five more ways either to begin treatment while the ambulance is on its way or to take care of less serious cases of heat exhaustion at home.

3. Remove restrictive clothing.

It is not necessary to run around au naturelle to beat the heat, and it's really not a good idea to sunburn places on which one ordinarily sits down. Loose, flowing clothing made from fabrics that "breathe," such as cotton, is an excellent way to keep cooler in hot weather. Once heat exhaustion or heat stroke sets in, however, it is important to take off any kind of clothing that clings to the skin, to allow perspiration to evaporate, and to provide greater access to the skin for cooling devices.

4. Cool the skin with washcloths or sheets dipped in ice water.

Don't try to cool off by holding ice directly to the skin. In heatstroke, direct exposure of the skin leads to initial cooling followed by rebound hyperthermia, the body's overproduction of heat to counteract rapid cooling. Packing someone in ice is something best left to medical professionals. A more effective way to cool off quickly is to wrap the body in cold sheets. Keeping a damp cloth or a bag of frozen peas or even a sheet in the freezer for emergency use during heat waves is a good idea.

5. Apply ice packs to the axillae and groin.

Cold packs cool down the body's core temperature fast, but most people don't know the best places to put them. One location to "ice down" is the groin. Placing an ice pack over the lower abdoment cools the arteries and veins serving the digestive tract and the legs.

The other prime locations for applying ice packs are the axillae, or arm pits. Placing ice packs here cools the arms as well as the heart, neck, and head, without causing excessive cooling of the head that could aggravate headache with "brain freeze." Be sure to use cold packs, not ice itself, because ice can cool down the body too quickly.

6. Offer a water or a non-caffeinated, non-alcoholic beverage if the heatstroke victim is conscious.

Sometimes, but not always, the underlying issue in heatstroke is dehydration. A few sips of a cool beverage that does not contain either alcohol or caffeine can help, but only if the heatstroke or heat exhaustion victim is fully conscious and capable of swallowing. Fluid needs to be sipped, not gulped, and should not be offered immediately after vomiting.

7. Get a heatstroke victim to an air conditioned location as quickly as possible.

It's always best to get a heat victim out of the heat. When moving someone who is not conscious, it is essential to make sure airways stay open. If there is vomiting, turn the person on his or her side and wait for help. Do not carry someone who is vomiting in a manner that could cause vomit to aspirate into their lungs.

It's always best to call for help sooner rather than later. Emergency room physicians refer to the "golden hour" when internal organs and the brain can still be saved, the first hour after heatstroke sets in. The sooner someone is transported to necessary medical treatment, the more likely life is to be saved.