Morning sunlight is important for everyone’s health, especially for the elder family member. Exposure to extreme summer heat can be very harmful for them and in worse cases, can even become fatal. This article will provide you ten summer safety tips for aged members of your family.
Summer is also known as a fun time. Most of the people plan different categories of outdoor activities, such as picnics at the beach, BBQ get-togethers, and pool parties!
People eagerly wait for summer as summer time means a lot yummy delights such as fresh mangoes!
While on one hand summer calls for some serious fun, but on the other hand, the heat can mess up the whole fun. High-temperature heat can make sun-loving elder individuals exhausted and nauseous. Scorching sunlight of summers may become the reason of many skin problems. The type of clothes you choose for your parents or grandparents in the summer is extremely important.
Here are the ten essential summer safety tips which will help you keep your aged family members safe and secure in the summer heat!
Comfortable Clothing
The most important tip for summer is proper or comfortable clothing. As a person gets old, their body becomes weak, and the skin gets sensitive. To protect an older person’s skin from the harmful rays, you must take care about their attire.
When they are going out, make sure that they are wearing pants and long-sleeve shirts. Their attire should be light-colored. Covering their heads with brimmed hats is another important thing, Sunglasses are an essential part of the summer-gear as it protects the eyes from UVB and UVA rays.
Keep Hydrated
In summer, staying hydrated must be everybody’s priority. Proper intake of water is a must for elders. It is important to avoid drinks that contain a high level of sugar like soft drinks, coffee, tea, and other caffeinated beverages as these can dehydrate a body further.
Elderly members often avoid vegetables and fruits due to the difficulty of chewing. Fresh juices of vegetables and fruits are superb to keep them hydrated. However, for people with diabetes make sure that they do not consume sugary drinks.
Certain medications can cause a risk of dehydration. Please make sure the consumption of electrolytes, because minerals replace them in the body which lost through sweating.
Correctly Store Medicine
When the temperature gets hot, it is necessary to consult a doctor or pharmacist regarding medicines. The extreme heat can negatively impact the quality of medicines, if not properly stored.
You have to place medicine in a cooler area such as a fridge. Make sure to keep your loved one’s medicines in a safe place, before things get bad.
Prevention of Bugs
In the summers the flying insects, bed bugs, and mosquitoes can be very irritating. Mosquitos are a source of various diseases which is why proper safety measures need to be taken. It is crucial to understand that elder people are at a higher risk due to weakened immune systems.
To help your elder member from any virus, make sure to use essential oil diffusers, candles, and traps to safeguard your loved one’s room from disease-carrying insects.
Overheating Awareness
Common issues that an elder people might have to face due to strong heat waves, are low blood pressure, hyperthermia, heatstroke, syncope, and even death. Here we have some symptoms of common sickness included; rapid pulse, fluids of sweating, vomiting, dizziness, fainting/being unconscious. To prevent overheating, avoid to let them out from 11 am to 4 pm, it is the peak strength.
Keep cool
In the hot weather, it is best to keep the senior ones in a cool or air-conditioned environment avoid. You must advise them to not go outside unnecessarily. If you don’t have an HVAC system at your home, then open the windows to allow air-flow and cross-ventilation to avoid the suffocation. If your aged parents or grandparents want to go out, then take them to places like shopping malls and grocery stores. Make sure they are consuming a sufficient amount of water throughout the day.
Morning Exercise
Many elders want to stay active and fit in even in an old age. Unfortunately, the scorching summer sun puts a restriction on their outdoor activities like walking, jogging, and sports like golf and tennis.
Then what to do? Don’t worry! Make a habit of exercising with your loved ones early in the morning. Try to take them out in the morning. The morning sunshine also provides them sufficient level of vitamin D which is very good for their bones.
Hiring
Some seniors are habitual of home chores. In the summers it becomes quite difficult for gardening, cooking and cleaning for elders. So, you can hire some helping hand in the season of summer.
There are many in-home health services which are the best option for elders that require medical assistance.
Avoid Hot Showers
Hot showers are good for muscular relaxation. In the season of summer, cold water showers are a much better alternate.
Emergency Numbers Handy
Keep your seniors aware of all contact numbers they might need in case of an emergency. Everyone knows how to dial 911 if any emergency occurs. Make a list of other important numbers which you or your elder ones might need when heat strikes, such as local hospital, local fire department, insurance provider, and doctors, etc.