DENVER — As more people spend their time outdoors, healthcare providers tell the Scripps News Group it's not just about how hot it gets, it's how long you're exposed to the heat and recognizing the early warning signs can prevent a medical emergency.
“If you are out there for 12 hours, you're at higher risk. If you're in 90 degrees for two or three hours, you're probably okay as long as you're staying hydrated and taking in an appropriate amount of electrolytes,” HCA HealthONE Swedish emergency department director & nurse practitioner Parie Morgan Jared said.
Jared said heat illness progresses in stages, from muscle cramps to heat exhaustion and, if untreated, heat stroke.
“Whenever you start to feel those early symptoms, like muscle tightness or muscle spasms, you've got like some restless activity, you're starting to feel a little bit hot, you're sweating a lot more than you normally do. That's your body trying to get ahead of it and trying to compensate and signal to you, hey, there's something going on, and that's when you would want to take preventative measures,” Jared said.
While local emergency rooms told Denver7 they're not seeing an unusual spike in heat-related illnesses, they are treating a steady number of patients with preventable heat emergencies.
“According to system-wide Children's Hospital Colorado (Children's Colorado) records, we've had a total of 6,600 visits across our Emergency Department / Urgent Care sites over the past two weeks. Of these visits, only 9 were due to heat-related illness, and none were admitted for this reason. This is generally consistent with the volume and trends Children's Colorado typically sees during the summer months,” a Children’s Hospital Colorado spokesperson told Denver7.
Over at HCA HealthONE Swedish emergency department, they are seeing the normal volume of people coming in, given the temperatures the state is currently experiencing.
“It is fairly common, throughout the summer months, for us to get some patients present to the emergency department for these types of symptoms,” Jared said.
Older adults and people spending hours exercising or working outside are at the highest risk.
“As we get older, we lose the ability to regulate our temperature, and we're also not as prone to staying hydrated and to drink as much as we probably should. Extreme sport athletes or cardio-driven athletes that are out there for longer time periods in the same temperature are the ones who we typically say get to those later stages of heat exhaustion,” Jared added.
Denver7 asked about common misconceptions when it comes to heat-related illnesses.
“A lot of people think of your Gatorades or your Powerades. Things like that will help with it but they're super high in sugar, and they're not necessarily the best thing,” Jared said. A Pedialyte or something that is marketed a little bit differently, lower in sugar, but still has all those electrolytes is really key to staying hydrated in that environment.”
Staying hydrated, replacing electrolytes and taking breaks in the shade are some ways to prevent heat-related illnesses. If you are looking to head outdoors, the best time to go is around sunrise and sunset.
