MODESTO, Calif. — As many Central Valley areas are forecasted to cross 105 degrees up to 110 degrees through Friday, health officials warn vulnerable California residents are at risk of heat-related illnesses.
ABC10 spoke with Dr. Nathan Stuempfig, an emergency physician for Kaiser Permanente Modesto and Manteca, who has experience in addressing heat-related illnesses.
Here are five things Dr. Steumpfig says you need to know:
1. Symptoms of heat-related illnesses are muscle cramps, fatigue, lightheadedness, nausea, and headaches. It can escalate to severe seizures and then altered mental status.
2. There are two types of people Dr. Steumpfig sees frequently for symptoms of heat-related illness:
- Athletes: He says they don't recognize the signs and symptoms early enough, get behind on hydration, and then begin to experience symptoms
- Medicated people: He says people on a lot of different medications, particularly heart medications, whose bodies just aren't used to the heat
3. People can avoid heat-related illness by limiting their time in the sun and stepping out of the house early in the day, or late in the afternoon.
4. Keep up with your fluids. "Whether that's water, whether that's Gatorade or Pedialyte. You want to be drinking close to two liters of fluid per day, at least at the minimum," he said.
5. Always make sure you have a cool place you can retreat to nearby if you begin experiencing symptoms.
"So if anybody's starting to feel nauseated, if somebody's feeling fatigued or lightheaded, it's very important to get them fluids right away, get them out of the sun, get them into the shade, or even better yet in an air conditioned place," Steumpfig said. "You can spray mist on their face with a spray bottle, put fans on them and really get them to cool off as soon as possible."
