Beat the Heat: Hydration Tips to Help Prevent Heat Stress This Summer
Summer often means vacations, beaches, camping, and other outdoor activities. As we plan to spend more time outside, whether for work or play, we need to be mindful of heat stress and hydration.
Heat Stress Risks
Heat stress can affect indoor and outdoor workers exposed to extreme heat, increasing their risk of heat-related illnesses. According to the CDC, “occupational heat stress is the combination of metabolic heat, environmental heat, and clothing and personal protective equipment (PPE), which results in increased heat storage within the body.” Risk factors that can increase heat stress include, but are not limited to, high temperature and humidity, direct sunlight, radiant heat sources, limited air movement, lack of acclimatization, physical exertion, and individual susceptibility (age, physical condition, health problems, medications, etc.). For more information on heat-related illnesses, including symptoms and first aid treatments, view the CDC’s website on heat illnesses.
Exposure to heat stress can result in both physical injuries and heat-related illnesses. As temperatures rise, we sweat as part of a process called evaporative cooling. Think about how cool you feel as you get out of the pool, lake, ocean, or river. The ambient temperature is still above body temperature, but your body feels much cooler due to the evaporation of moisture from your skin. However, when humidity is higher, we’re less able to sweat to cool off. We can use the heat index, a combination of temperature and humidity, to determine how hot it feels, providing a more accurate reading of what we are exposing our bodies to.
Hydration
While staying properly hydrated cannot prevent heat stress, it can help prevent heat illnesses. The best practice is to drink water throughout the day rather than waiting until you are thirsty, as this is an indication that you may already be dehydrated. Start by drinking a glass of water when you wake up. This helps to replace any fluids lost overnight and kickstart your metabolism. Continue drinking water after work to replenish what you lost throughout the day.
As we sweat, we not only release water but also electrolytes and trace amounts of cellular waste. Under normal circumstances, drinking water may be sufficient for adequate hydration; in extreme heat, it may not be enough. Avoid alcohol, energy drinks, and beverages high in sugar and caffeine, as these can add extra calories without the caloric benefit, and caffeine and alcohol are diuretics that can reduce hydration and increase strain on your heart. The market is saturated with hydration packets and electrolyte drinks that claim to boost hydration, but choose carefully which you use. Individuals on specialized diets or certain medications may need to find hydration packets that suit their dietary needs. For example, hydration supplements with low or no sugar content will not help hypoglycemic individuals. As always, if you have any health questions or concerns, contact your doctor or healthcare professional.
Stay ahead of the heat by planning proactively, encouraging consistent hydration, and recognizing early warning signs before they escalate. RETTEW’s safety consultants can help strengthen your heat stress prevention program and reinforce best practices through customized training—such as first aid and workplace safety courses that cover heat-related illnesses—to keep your team safe, compliant, and productive all summer long.
What’s Upcoming?
Keep your team safe on the job. Register for a class today!
All classes are held at the RETTEW Training Center in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, unless otherwise noted.
August 19: First Aid, CPR, BBP, and AED (8:00 AM – 12:30 PM) – Pittsburgh, PA
September 14-16: HAZWOPER Technician, 24-Hour
September 14-18: HAZWOPER Site Worker, 40-Hour
September 17: First Aid, CPR, BBP, and AED (7:30 AM – 1:00 PM)
September 18: Permit-Required Confined Space (Entrant, Attendant, and Supervisor) (7:30 AM – 1:00 PM)
To register, please contact Ed Kauffman at 717-516-7487 or via email at ed.kauffman@rettew.com, click on the event link above, or enroll through the course listing on our website calendar.
Katrina Cooper, MS, GSP, ASHM
Ms. Cooper is a Health and Safety Technician on RETTEW’s Health, Safety & Environment team. She has more than five years of experience in the safety field, specializing with DOT/RCRA material handling, including identifying, storing, and coordinating the shipment of hazardous wastes. Her expertise also lies in compliance and incident response. Ms. Cooper has served as the secretary of a certified safety committee for multiple organizations, enacted new safety policies, and updated safety precautions at a drinking water treatment facility. She is involved with quality control, has experience performing noise monitoring, personal air monitoring, field site safety audits, safety oversights, and silica air monitoring, as well as providing other safety trainings. She also has experience developing training matrices for various industries.
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