There are many factors that can increase your susceptibility for heat-related injuries and illnesses. Some of these factors you might have control over, while others you might not.

NATURAL FACTORS THAT CAN MAKE YOU MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO HEAT-RELATED INJURIES & ILLNESSES:

• Age. After age 35 your body’s ability to dissipate heat (primarily through sweating) will decline. As a result, older adults tend to have higher core body temperatures than younger adults, when working at the same rate in the heat. This difference between older and younger individuals can be minimized with heat acclimatization and endurance training.

• Genetics. Some people are able to acclimatize faster and tolerate the heat better than others; some of this appears to be attributable to genetic makeup. However, heat acclimatization can help level the playing field.

• Diseases. Various skin disorders (e.g., psoriasis), cardiovascular diseases (e.g., hypertension), sweat gland disorders (e.g., Type I and Type II diabetes), and metabolic disorders can impair your body’s ability to effectively thermoregulate. This means that your core body temperature will be higher for the same workload, which puts you at increased risk for heat-related injuries & illnesses.

EXTERNAL SUBSTANCES THAT CAN MAKE YOU MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO HEAT-RELATED INJURIES & ILLNESSES:

• Drugs that affect your nervous system (e.g., antidepressants, sympathomimetics, anticholinergics, & antipsychotics). These drugs have been shown to impair your sweat gland function & increase your heat production, meaning that if you’re regularly taking these drugs, you’ll likely have a higher core body temperature for the same work rate than someone who is not taking these medications.

• Antihistamines (e.g., allergy medications). These drugs can impair your sweat gland function making it harder for you to get rid of heat as readily, which can lead to an increased core body temperature.

• Drugs that affect your cardiovascular system (e.g., beta blockers & calcium channel blockers). These drugs work to lower your heart rate. This is a problem when working in the heat because you need a higher heart rate to be able to pump blood to the skin (to get rid of heat) and the working muscles (for energy). As a result of the lower heart rate induced by these drugs, you might heat up faster and find it harder to maintain a high work rate in the heat.

• Diuretics. These drugs make it difficult for you to stay hydrated, which means that in the heat, your body will be working extra hard to keep you cool. Remember that dehydration exacerbates the effects of heat stress.

THINGS YOU CAN CONTROL IN ORDER TO MINIMIZE YOUR RISK FOR HEAT-RELATED INJURIES & ILLNESSES:

• Fitness. Making sure that you are healthy and staying fit can help you better handle the heat. A lot of the same adaptations you get with heat acclimatization (e.g., higher sweat rate and lower core body temperature) can also be obtained by doing endurance training in cool environments.

• Acclimatization. Heat acclimatization is the best way to minimize your risk for heat-related injuries and illnesses. In general, it takes about 2 weeks to acclimatize to the heat; and once acclimatized, you need to be exposed to the heat at least every 3-4 days to maintain those adaptations. See here for how to do this.

• Hydration. Since dehydration can exacerbate the effects of heat stress, it is important to stay hydrated. See our blog post on how to stay hydrated throughout the work day.

• Listen to your body. If you start to experience any signs or symptoms of heat injuries or illnesses, take a break. Find shade, rest, and drink some water. Remove extra clothing if possible to help cool you off. Always listen to your body, and stop before it’s too late.

• Sleep. More research is needed to determine the exact impacts of sleep on thermoregulation. However, if you know that you’re someone who doesn’t do well with minimal sleep, make sure you’re getting enough rest before spending a long day working in the heat.

• Avoid drug use. Not only can recreational drugs (e.g., alcohol, ephedrine, cocaine, ecstasy) change your heart rate and blood pressure, they can also alter your body’s ability to get rid of heat (via increased blood flow to the skin and sweating). These drugs will quickly increase your risk for heat injury and illness, not to mention impair your abilities to successfully complete your job.

Now that you know all of the things that can harm and help you in the heat, it’s time to put that knowledge into action! Kenzen can help with our Heat Safety Training Program.

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REFERENCE:

Pryor, J. Luke, Julien D. Périard, and Riana R. Pryor. “Predisposing Factors for Exertional Heat Illness.” Exertional Heat Illness. Springer, Cham, 2020. 29-57.