I've been giving some tips on child safety in summer I hope they serve so that we can avoid accidents and serious problems that increase during the summer season.
However, I do not want to close this topic without devoting myself to very specific issues related to heat and hydration, which, although generally have less serious consequences, can be.
Avoid heat stroke
The human body is prepared to regulate body temperature with its own means, keeping it at approximately 37 degrees on average, although there may be individual variations and change normally throughout the day.
When it is very hot we sweat, the heart rate increases and the capillaries dilate, managing to cool the body. But in summer, and especially in children and the elderly, natural thermoregulation, at high temperatures and not having enough hydration, can fail and result in a very serious problem that can even lead to death: heat stroke.
The symptoms of heat stroke They are a collapse. The pulse is greatly accelerated, there are dizziness and nausea. The body temperature rises and, if it exceeds 39 degrees, it is essential to seek medical help. Other symptoms are dry and flushed skin and mental confusion. In the most serious cases you may lose consciousness.
Young children, the sick, babies and the elderly are more likely to suffer from this problem. They are not aware of the hardness of the conditions, forget to drink or have no feeling of thirst and may have failures in their temperature regulation system, something that in smaller babies is even normal, as this mechanism may not yet be well developed . With them you have to take precautions.
Heat stroke can be easily prevented. Fundamentally, avoid exposure without protection at high temperatures and ensure proper hydration.
We must protect children with hats and fresh, breathable and light-colored clothing, preventing them from performing intense physical exercise in the hottest hours.
To prevent heat stroke in Children are indispensable to take into account some simple measures. Avoid the direct sun on the head, wearing a cap. You should not stay outside in the hottest hours and least still do intense physical exercise. At home you have to stay with the blinds down and try to cool off with fans, soft temperature air conditioning and showers. On the street, look for the shade, fountains or cooler places.
Food and hydration They have an important role, too, as protectors. We must offer children plenty of water and include in their diet many fruits, vegetables, juices and soft drinks, avoiding copious or very greasy meals in the hottest hours.
If our child has suffered a heat stroke it is important to call the medical services and measures must be taken while they arrive. These happen by keeping it in a cool place and moistening your body with fresh, non-frozen compresses, to try to lower or at least contain your body temperature.
Rehydration It is important, with water that is not too cold or isotonic drinks in the older ones, but we should only give them if the child is conscious and able to drink normally, because if he is unconscious it is very dangerous and there may be a risk of drowning.
Prevent dehydration
Parallel to the heat stroke and as a measure that prevents it, we must talk about dehydration, recognize it and prevent it.
Babies have a higher percentage of water in their body, 80% and are the most vulnerable to dehydration, either due to excessive heat, diarrhea or a limited water supply, but we must also increase precautions with children Well, when they are younger, their balance is more delicate and less aware they are thirsty.
Prevention is simple. We should avoid exposure to excessive heat, dress the child with fresh clothes, give them water-rich foods and offer liquids.
With infants, as I said, you have to be especially careful. A breastfeeding baby on demand obtains all the liquid he needs from breastfeeding, but I must emphasize that breastfeeding should be freely available, not with marked hours, but giving the baby access to the breast so that he can give a "shot " whenever you want. The milk at the beginning is less concentrated in fat and, especially in hot weather, the baby will take a little breast as a natural source of liquid, even if it has "eaten" a short time ago.
If the baby is breastfeeding, we must be attentive to its signs, never concentrate the powder that is added to the bottle and, if necessary, offer water if recommended by the pediatrician, always taking into account that artificial feeding lacks the natural mechanism of breastfeeding to offer on demand liquids but that must be given on demand.
If all this fails dehydration can be recognized by some symptoms: loss of 5% of body weight, dry and pale skin, sinking of the fontanelles in babies, shortage of urine and hard bowel movements.
Although perhaps the best way to recognize the symptoms of dehydration It is to be attentive to the activity and the spirit of the small child, offering him liquid if we perceive a problem and anticipating it.
We are not done We have left more tips on child safety in summer, and, in future entries, we will talk about insects, loose animals, outdoor play spaces and home security.
