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Sun, Sea, And Sudden Killers To Avoid
Plus: bite-sized learning at any time of life
The 10almonds Team
June 03, 2023
Today’s almonds have been activated by:
Loading Screen Tip: sunscreen is great, but don’t forget UV-blocking sunglasses for your eyes!
⏰ IN A RUSH?
Today’s 30-Second Summary
If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:
Heart disease can be a silent killer because the signs often aren’t obvious until it’s too late.
However, there are things to watch out for
(see today’s video for these; we’ve put a text list right underneath it too, in case you’re pressed for time)
Heat exhaustion is a milder form of heatstroke, but the former can turn into the latter very quickly if untreated.
Symptoms of heat exhaustion include:
Headache
Nausea
Cold sweats
Light-headedness
Symptoms of heatstroke include:
The same, plus
Red/flushed-looking skin
High body temperature (104ºF / 40ºC)
Disorientation/confusion
Accelerated heart rate
There are things we can do to prevent and treat heat exhaustion
See today’s main feature for those!
In the case of heatstroke, or non-recovery from heat exhaustion, call an ambulance
It’s also vitally important to keep our brains sharp as we age
Today’s sponsor, Brilliant, are offering 10almonds subscribers 30 days free use of their habit-building daily learning app
Read on to learn about these things and more…
👀 WATCH AND LEARN
Heart Health | 7 Signs Your Heart May Be Under Extreme Stress
Heart disease is thought of as a silent killer because the signs often aren’t obvious until it’s too late. However, there are things we can watch out for:
The seven signs:
We recommend watching the video for more detail!
🥵 MAIN FEATURE
Stay Safe From Heat Exhaustion & Heatstroke!
For most of us, summer is upon us now. Which can be lovely… and also bring new, different health risks. Today we’re going to talk about heat exhaustion and heatstroke.
What’s the difference?
Heat exhaustion is a milder form of heatstroke, but the former can turn into the latter very quickly if left untreated.
Symptoms of heat exhaustion include:
Headache
Nausea
Cold sweats
Light-headedness
Symptoms of heatstroke include the above and also:
Red/flushed-looking skin
High body temperature (104ºF / 40ºC)
Disorientation/confusion
Accelerated heart rate
What should we do about it?
In the case of heatstroke, call 911 or the equivalent emergency number for the country where you are.
Hopefully we can avoid it getting that far, though:
Prevention first
Here are some top tips to avoid heat exhaustion and thus also avoid heatstroke. Many are common sense, but it’s easy to forget things—especially in the moment, on a hot sunny day!
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate
(Non-sugary) iced teas, fruit infusions, that sort of thing are more hydrating than water alone
Avoid alcohol
If you really want to imbibe, rehydrate between each alcoholic drink
Time your exercise with the heat in mind
In other words, make any exercise session early or late in the day, not during the hottest period
Use sunscreen
This isn’t just for skin health (though it is important for that); it will also help keep you cooler, as it blocks the UV rays that literally cook your cells
Keep your environment cool
Shade is good, air conditioning / cooling fans can help.
A wide-brimmed hat is portable shade just for you
Wear loose, breathable clothing
We write about health, not fashion, but: light breathable clothes that cover more of your body are generally better healthwise in this context, than minimal clothes that don’t, if you’re in the sun.
Be aware of any medications you’re taking that will increase your sensitivity to heat.
This includes medications that are dehydrating, and includes most anti-depressants, many anti-nausea medications, some anti-allergy medications, and more.
Check your labels/leaflets, look up your meds online, or ask your pharmacist.
Treatment
If prevention fails, treatment is next. Again, in the case of heatstroke, it’s time for an ambulance.
If symptoms are “only” of heat exhaustion and are more mild, then:
Move to a cooler location
Rehydrate again
Remove clothing that’s confining or too thick
What does confining mean? Clothing that’s tight and may interfere with the body’s ability to lose heat.
For example, you might want to lose your sports bra, but there is no need to lose a bikini, for instance.
Use ice packs or towels soaked in cold water, applied to your body, especially wear circulation is easiest to affect, e.g. forehead, wrists, back of neck, under the arms, or groin.
A cool bath or shower, or a dip in the pool may help cool you down, but only do this if there’s someone else around and you’re not too dizzy.
This isn’t a good moment to go in the sea, no matter how refreshing it would be. You do not want to avoid heatstroke by drowning instead.
If full recovery doesn’t occur within a couple of hours, seek medical help.
Stay safe and have fun!
❤️ OUR SPONSORS MAKE THIS PUBLICATION POSSIBLE
Keep Yourself Sharp (and Ever-Improving!) with Brilliant's Bite-Sized Learning
We all know the benefits to keeping our brains sharp, especially as we age. And yet it's very easy (and tempting!) to throw our hands in the air and leave math, computer science, and coding to "kids nowadays". But it doesn't have to be that way!
If you'd like to learn some very cool skills, Brilliant is... Well... Brilliant at teaching it.
The premise of Brilliant is: interactive learning in a way that feels almost like playing a game, but the level-ups are levelling up your actual real-life skills (including the aforementioned math, computer science, and coding—you get to choose what you learn).
Best yet, it's also designed to make it as easy as possible to make learning a bite-size daily habit. In other words, instead of a scheduling commitment for classes, it's something you can do while you drink your morning coffee.
In short, we very highly recommend it!
You don't have to just trust us though, because they offer a 30-day free trial 😎
🌏 AROUND THE WEB
What’s happening in the health world…
Aging myelin: a new perspective in Alzheimer's disease progression
Men with higher levels of marital satisfaction have lower burnout risk
Staying healthy and safe during a hurricane or other severe weather
Scientists hacked human cells to make insulin, and it reversed diabetes in mice
Researchers characterize a unique molecular mechanism of early stages of programmed cell death
More to come tomorrow!
📖 ONE-MINUTE BOOK REVIEW
The Metabolism Reset Diet: Repair Your Liver, Stop Storing Fat, and Lose Weight Naturally - by Alan Christianson
The liver is an incredible organ that does a very important job, but what's not generally talked about is how we can help it... Beyond the obvious "try to not poison it too much with alcohol, tobacco, etc". But what can we do that's actually positive for it?
That's what Alan Christianson offers in this book.
Now, usually when someone speaks of a "four week cleanse" as this book advertises on its front cover, it's a lot of bunk. The liver cleanses itself, and the liver and kidneys between them (along with some other organs and processes) detoxify your body for you. No amount of celery juice will do that. However, this book does better than that:
What it's about, is not really about trying to do a "detox" at all, so much as supporting your liver function by:
Giving your liver what it needs to regenerate (mostly: protein)
Not over-taxing your liver while it does so
The liver is a self-regenerating organ (the mythological story of Prometheus aside, here in real life it can regenerate up to 80% of itself, given the opportunity), so whatever the current state of your liver, it's probably not too late to fix it.
Maybe you've been drinking a little too much, or maybe you've been taking some meds that have hobbled it a bit (some medications strain the liver rather), or maybe your diet hasn't been great. Christianson invites you to draw a line under that, and move forwards:
The book gives an overview of the science involved, and explains about the liver's role in metabolism (hence the promised weight loss benefits) and our dietary habits' impact on liver function. This is about what we eat, and also about when we eat it, and how and when our body metabolizes that.
Christianson also provides meal ideas and recipes. If we're honest (and we always are), the science/principles part of the book are worth a lot more than the meal-plan part of the book, though.
In short: a great book for understanding how the liver works and how we can help it do its job effectively.
What did you think of today's newsletter?We always love to hear from you, whether you leave us a comment or even just a click in the poll if you're speeding by! |
May you enjoy this summer’s weather safely,
The 10almonds Team