On Wednesday there will be a small truce in temperatures that will be around 35 degrees in the center and south of the Community of Madrid, while in the mountains they will remain around 30 degrees, according to the forecast of the State Meteorological Agency. (Aemet). Although it will only be a temporary break since the thermometers will rise again on Thursday and Friday to the levels of the beginning of the week.
With temperatures close to 40ºC, the head of operations of Samur-Civil Protection, Dr. Natividad Ramos, offered advice and recommendations on Tuesday to deal with the heat wave that is affecting the Community of Madrid.
The person in charge of Samur-Civil Protection recalled that throughout the summer there are many pathologies that this municipal emergency service attends to and that are related to high temperatures, from cramps while doing sports or syncope to heat stroke, which It is “something very serious”.
“People die from heat stroke,” said the doctor, who explained that only “four or five” are treated each summer season, even taking the person suffering from it to the UVI. “The whole body is turned upside down and doesn’t work the way it should,” she explained.
The symptoms, he explained, involve headache, tiredness, weakness, dizziness, nausea, diarrhea or fainting. “When you start with all these symptoms, something strange is happening. Your body is beginning to function as more stressed to be able to expel the heat,” said Ramos, who has recommended that anyone presenting these symptoms call 112 immediately or go to the emergencies of the health center.
To prevent it, he has stressed the importance of proper hydration, with a recommendation to drink water continuously even if you do not feel thirsty or any type of liquid, avoiding alcoholic beverages.
This recommendation is especially indicated in the case of children and the elderly, as well as in the chronically ill. In this sense, he recalled that the elderly are more vulnerable because their thermoregulatory center is aged. Likewise, he has recalled that there are many elderly people who live alone, for which reason he has urged them to be aware of their condition.
He has also advised a correct diet, with light meals mainly based on fruits, salads or vegetables, in addition to dressing in loose-fitting, light-colored clothing, and protecting yourself from the sun with sunglasses and caps. “A burned skin is a skin that does not work”, she has reminded her to also recommend the use of protective creams.
Along the same lines, he has recommended avoiding leaving home in the central hours of the day, opting instead for the first strip of the morning and the last of the afternoon. “From twelve to six in the afternoon it is better not to go out and especially not to do sports in the open air at these hours,” she has had an impact.
Some recommendations that it has transferred mainly for workers who have to carry out their jobs outdoors. In the case of homeless people, he recalled that Samur Social offers them alternatives and advice to alleviate the effects of high temperatures.
Likewise, it has stressed that it is necessary to avoid leaving children and pets inside the vehicles. “The car acts as if it were an oven and that is very dangerous and you can get heat stroke,” she warned.
In case you suspect that you are facing a heat stroke, Dr. Ramos has stressed the importance of drinking fluids and hydration and going to a heated area or in the shade. As she has explained, at the moment the Samur-Civil Protection has not dealt with any case of heat stroke during these summer days, in which the activity is similar to that of other seasons.
