It will still be very hot. A new heat record was broken on Tuesday, the hottest day ever recorded in the country after August 15, announces Météo-France, while the peak of the heat wave is expected for Wednesday or Thursday. This Wednesday, no less than nineteen departments in the southern half of France are placed on heatwave red vigilance, with temperature peaks expected at 42 ° C. Ain, Loire, Isère, Lozère, Gard, Vaucluse, Hérault, Aveyron, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne, Aude, Lot, Lot-et-Garonne, Haute-Garonne and Gers thus pass to the highest level of alert, a detailed Météo-France, joining the Rhône, Ardèche, Drôme and Haute-Loire, in red vigilance since Tuesday. At the same time, thirty-seven other departments are placed in heat wave orange vigilance.
And between days of scorching heat and nights when the thermometer barely drops, the body is put to the test, especially that of people most sensitive to high heat. Dehydration, heatstroke, edema and other skin redness can affect them.
Extreme heat and edema
Among the inconveniences caused by heat, swelling of the legs and feet can be observed. “It happens to me from time to time to have heavy legs when I walk a lot and it’s a little hot, confides Anne, in her thirties. But this summer, during my vacation in Rome where it was 40 degrees and where I walked between 10 and 15 km a day to discover the city, the heat was such that I had oedema: my feet and ankles were very swollen, even puffy, to the point that I no longer had any ankles! Not only was it ugly, but it was above all very uncomfortable, confides the young woman. I felt cramped in my shoes and at the end of the day I was dragging my feet”.
“The swelling of the legs and/or more rarely of the forearms is due to oedema. It is linked to vasodilation (increase in the diameter of blood vessels) which occurs in hot weather, to cool the body, explains Health Insurance. This condition generally occurs in the elderly and in people with chronic venous insufficiency such as varicose veins or heavy legs. It affects “mainly patients with vascular alterations linked to hypertension, diabetes or peripheral vascular damage”, adds the Ministry of Health.
To find some comfort during his scorching holidays, “I ended each shower with a jet of very cold water on my feet, ankles and legs, which did me good, but not enough to miraculously deflate them. , Anne says. And in the evening, when I lay down, I raised my legs slightly to stimulate blood circulation a little ”. Good reflexes adopted by the young woman. “It is preferable to elevate the legs and place the patient in a cool environment”, confirms the Ministry of Health, which in passing advises against diuretics, which “are not indicated and increase the risk of dehydration”.
Sunburn and skin reactions to heat
And if you expose your skin to the sun during the hottest hours of the day, “you run the risk of getting sunburn, which in the short term exposes you to painful sensations and a risk of burning, warns Dr. Andreas Werner, pediatrician and president of the French Association of Ambulatory Pediatrics (AFPA). But in the long term, it increases the risk of melanoma and skin cancer due to sun exposure, he insists. We each have a certain skin repair capital that protects us from skin cancer, but this capital is limited. And it is dangerous especially in very young children.
Another risk: “developing lucite is a kind of sun allergy which manifests itself by very small pimples, redness and a burning sensation, continues the pediatrician. We tend to develop it at the start of the season then it subsides, but we can have it at any age, it’s a sign of poor adaptation to heat”. And to prevent these skin reactions, “the best prevention is not to expose yourself to the sun during the hottest hours, insists Dr. Werner. Good advice for all ages, but especially for toddlers.
Dehydration and heatstroke
With a thermometer that in places exceeds 40 degrees in the shade this Wednesday, putting your nose outside also exposes you to the risk of dehydration and heat stroke at high speed. “Risks that threaten at any age, but to which are particularly sensitive youngsters, emphasizes Dr. Werner. In them, the signs of heat stroke are behavioral problems, with children who only cry, who become lethargic, who have dry mucous membranes and skin, have intense thirst and a decrease in urine . But this stage is already relatively advanced, so the most important thing is prevention, he insists. Thus, a baby or small child should not go out in the sun after 10-11 a.m. and before 5 p.m., when the heat is strongest. We stay inside, in the shade, in the cool, and we avoid any intense physical activity, because when we bring our children to play at a playground for example, they will run, exert themselves and arrive very quickly. to dehydration. We must always remember that children are not reasonable.
However, “the vulnerability of toddlers to heat is due to their daily water needs and intake, explains the pediatrician. In proportion to its weight, a baby drinks much more than an adult, up to 10 to 15% of their weight. So if there is a greater turnover in water intake and loss during the day due to extreme temperatures, the risk of dehydration is higher in young children, and particularly for babies.
Ensure that the most vulnerable drink enough
To prevent dehydration and heatstroke, you must drink, and drink again, whether you are young or old. But “for bottle-fed babies, water must be offered very regularly during the day, in addition to milk bottles, prescribed Dr. Werner. And for breastfed babies, it should be offered as often as possible, it will be enough to ensure their hydration. For children, water, fruit and raw vegetables are required. But you also have to watch over your teenagers: even at 16-17 you are not reasonable, notes the pediatrician. Teenagers can play for hours at the beach without drinking a single drop of water, so you have to make sure they’re getting enough hydration.” Vigilance is obviously also required for seniors who, with age, lose the feeling of thirst. Drinking a small glass of water very regularly helps to protect them from dehydration.
Recommendations to be applied throughout this scorching week. Because to find a little freshness, it will be necessary to wait for the weekend. Thunderstorms are expected on Friday and should finally be accompanied by a drop in temperatures.