Hot record, doctors: “48.8 degrees are scary, serious emergency”

Record relentless heat with temperatures reaching 48.8 degrees C today in Sicily, for the first time in European history. “A frightening number. Also because in our society, which is complex, not everyone has the tools and comforts to face seasons like these with the thermometer rising so much. And it is not just heat peaks but, unfortunately, for long periods. Heat waves are serious health emergencies: for us doctors they have always represented a serious problem because they increase mortality “. To say this, at the Adnkronos Salute, the president of Fnomceo, the national Federation of the Orders of Doctors, Filippo Anelli. “Heat waves are a health problem to be managed – he continues – so much so that even the Ministry of Health has long ago prepared a program to address them, because they are correlated to the increase in the number of deaths, particularly among the elderly and the most sick. compromises “, says Anelli, underlining that” for some time we had reports on the fact that the greenhouse effect would have led to an ever higher increase in temperatures and this would have had repercussions both on health management and on daily life. And now we are “. A problem that affects everyone and that everyone must take charge of. “We must foster a culture of One Health – he adds – considering that any alteration of the environment affects food and human health. Each of us must learn to consider the environment as a constitutive part of our society”. And act accordingly on several fronts: “The reduction of consumption – lists Anelli – the use of alternative energy sources, pollution, the use of antibiotics that alter a series of systems. The survival of the country, not just ours , is linked to the growth of a mentality that looks at the planet not as something to be exploited but as a fundamental part of us. We all live inside a large spaceship and if we change it for the worse we will have direct consequences “, he warns. WHO IS MOST AT RISK – “The patients most at risk are the elderly and those suffering from multiple pathologies. In this period the concern for our patients is dehydration. With perspiration, in fact, they lose fluids and mineral salts, but they don’t have the perception of it “explains Anelli. “There are many elderly people who in these days report to their family doctors, who are a bit ‘the’ call center ‘of health, a reduction in diuresis. This phenomenon, due to the loss of fluids due to the heat, with the concentration of urine often causes urinary infections. Problems that in this period are fearful because they risk upsetting the fragile balance of these patients “, says Anelli, who recalls the main rules for defending health when temperatures rise too much. It serves: “Drink, a lot – he lists – use air conditioners as much as possible; eat fruit and vegetables that contain the mineral salts that are lost; do not leave the house during the hottest hours; keep the windows closed as much as possible to prevent the entry of sun rays and if you do not have an air conditioner, use fans; take frequent showers and baths to lower your body temperature; avoid foods with a high protein or fat content and opt for a simple, natural diet rich in vegetables “.