Dr Salah said that labourers and athletes should drink enough water with salt as they lose sodium and potassium which are responsible for activity of the muscles. People working in hot and humid weather for long period lose fluids and salt. Some feel tired and vomit and sometimes they faint because of low blood pressure and heavy sweating. Dr Salah said that severe heat exhaustion leads to heat stroke. A heat stroke affects the brain and in the absence of much sweating the skin gets dry because the body has already lost fluids during heat exhaustion.
Some people fall unconscious and go into a coma.
Even though the temperature is not too high, people who spend long hours in the heat are more likely to suffer from heat stroke. Such patients may develop lung problems, kidney and liver failure if not treated immediately. He said blood can clot and may cause a stroke and it may block smaller vessels that transfer blood to the fingers, kidney and legs, he added. For information about the content or for permission to redistribute, publish or use for broadcast, contact our syndication department.