Rawalpindi: The extreme hot and humid weather conditions put a greater strain on the hearts of both -- healthy persons and the chronic patients – but people suffering from heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases are at greater risk of contracting life-threatening conditions.
Health experts say that the situation is more alarming mainly because of ignorance among the public as the majority of the people are unaware of the fact that the heart has to work harder during heat and humidity and it may bring on angina symptoms.
In extreme hot weather conditions, the body sweats to cool itself down and during the process, the body loses more fluids that can drop blood pressure and make the heart beat faster.
Different studies reveal that the extreme hot and humid weather conditions have much damaging effect on heart patients as the chances of heart failure among patients who have had a heart attack earlier increase with the extreme rise in temperature and humidity.
A heart patient’s heart may not afford extra strain and may not work harder in the extreme heat to maintain core body temperature. If a person is not a patient of heart failure or blood pressure, he or she should take salted water after having heavy sweating to avoid loss of essential fluids and salts but chronic patients should increase intake of water in hot weather conditions.
If a patient’s fluid intake is restricted because of some medical condition like heart failure, the patient must visit his or her physician for advice. Health experts also say that to avoid serious complications, heart patients should avoid exposure to heat and try to stay in a cooler environment.
Studies reveal that higher humidity, more moisture in the air, can interfere with the body’s ability to sweat and cool off. Heat and sweating can also lower the amount of fluid in the body, which can reduce blood volume and lead to dehydration. This may create strain on the heart.
Also the heart patients must avoid heavy, spicy and fried food during hot and humid weather conditions and should avoid fats as well. With the rise in mercury, your heart has to beat faster and work harder to pump blood to the surface of your skin to assist with sweating to cool your body and if the body cannot cool itself enough, the strain is put on the heart and organs can begin to suffer damage.
Moreover, babies or young children with complex congenital heart disease may face serious complications after exposure to extremely high temperatures. Elderly people and very young children are more at risk from extreme temperatures as they have more difficulty in regulating their body temperatures.
A top cardiologist, Major General (r) Azhar Mehmood Kayani, told ‘The News’ that in extreme hot weather conditions, the core body temperature increases and to control it, the blood circulation increases towards periphery, legs and arms, vasodilation (dilation of blood vessels) occurs at the periphery that decreases blood pressure and increases the heart rate.
He explained that for healthy persons, the effects may be less damaging until they stay hydrated but for heart patients, the hot and humid weather may be highly damaging and critical because the heart rate increases and the patients who have had angina may feel chest pain or suffer heart attack.
