For those of you who work in the mining and resources industry, constant heat all year round can make for very uncomfortable and uneasy work conditions, especially in the summertime. Here are 7 tips to keep cool, even when your environment isn’t.
Don’t forget that heat stress is a common health problem where the body cannot cool itself down and is extremely common on mine sites. It might start out with an increase in sweating, before feeling dizzy. This might lead to nausea, headaches and heat cramps. Experiencing these signs of overheating is not only uncomfortable, but it can also become a distraction and detriment to the task at hand.
So how do you keep yourself feeling cool, without asking your boss to install some air-con? (Because let’s face it – we all know it just isn’t possible sometimes).
1. Tips to keep cool – Drink water frequently
It goes without saying: your body will feel cooler if you are hydrated. This is an obvious tip but it is the most important because sweating causes dehydration. Staying hydrated is not only important for keeping cool, it’s crucial for your overall health (and often something that is forgotten during a busy day of working). Try drinking a bottle of water at least every hour.Add health juices to reduce body heat
2. Try Specialist Juices
Apart from water, certain juices can also flush out toxins from the body and provide a cooling effect. Watermelon, honeydew melon, cucumber, pomegranate and coconut water are some examples of fruits that help lower body temperature.
3. Keep a spray bottle handy
Fill a spray bottle with cool water and adjust the nozzle to fine mist. Spray it onto your skin for an instant cooling effect.
4. Run cold water over your wrists
Your wrists and other pressure points such as your neck, inner elbows or behind your knees can be doused with cold water for 10 seconds to reduce your temperature slightly. There are also plenty of pulse points around the foot and ankle, so you could even try soaking your feet in an ice bucket.
5. Wear natural fibre clothing
Where possible, try to wear lightweight natural fibres that don’t trap in heat. Cotton, silk and linen are great examples of breathable materials that keep your body feeling ventilated.
6. Eat small meals regularly
Your body warms up as it works to process larger meals. Metabolic heat is needed to break down food, so in theory, eating smaller portions can help you keep cooler. This also helps to avoid the sluggishness your body feels after a heavy meal, so you have more energy to perform.
7. Tips to keep cool – Try using an instant cooling towel
Cooling towels, like the Chilly Towel, are re-usable instant cooling towels that keep your body temperature cool for hours. Due to the unique hyper-evaporative fibres, this unique towel becomes cooler than ambient air when wet, which enables the towel to maintain a temperature that feels cool to the skin. The fibres retain water, which provides cooling relief while staying dry to touch for hours. A cooling towel cools to 30° below average body temperature. It actually feels dry to touch, which means it won’t dampen your clothing or make you feel uncomfortable when you’re moving around. Use it to wipe away sweat and cool your body at the same time.
Remember to always pay attention to signs of overheating. Symptoms like dizziness, headaches, muscle cramps and nausea can all point to heat-related illnesses. If you experience these symptoms at work, make sure you alert someone and immediately implement as many of these 7 top tips as possible. Always carry an instant cooling towel with you so you can instantly find cooling relief on the go.
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