Allergy medicines  Cough and cold medicines  Some blood pressure and heart medicines Diet pills (amphetamines) Irritable bladder and irritable bowel medicines  Laxatives Some mental health medicines Seizure medicines Thyroid pills Water pills

Talk to your doctor about what medicines you are taking. He or she can tell you if your medicine puts you at risk for heat stroke.

The other type of heat stroke - exertional or activity-induced - primarily affects athletes, laborers, and soldiers - persons who overdo physical activity in very hot temperatures.

Athletes

While football players who wear body-covering uniforms/equipment and practice in the hottest temperatures are especially prone to dehydration and heat stroke, all athletes are at risk in very high temperatures. Young athletes, in particular, are at higher risk for developing heat-related illness than adults because they absorb heat faster than adults, don't sweat as much and often don't "want" to drink fluids during exercise.

Do your best to avoid heat illness by following these tips from the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine :

Alert your coach or athletic trainer anytime you don’t feel well. Allow for acclimatization (adaptation) to hot, humid conditions. Gradually increase workout intensity and duration over a 10 to 14 day period. This helps train your body to drink more, increase blood volume and sweat better. Wear loose-fitting, light-colored clothing to help promote heat loss. Save strenuous exercise for early morning or late evening, not during the heat of the day. If this can’t be avoided, modify workout intensity and increase the number and length of rest breaks. When exercising outside, stay in the shade as much as possible. Drink up when it’s hot and when it’s not! You should have unlimited access to fluids throughout practices or competition. Monitor your hydration status. Ideally, body weight should be taken before and after practice to determine sweat loss. Check that urine color is pale like lemonade, not concentrated like apple juice. Two hours before exercise, drink at least 16 oz (2 cups) fluid. During exercise, drink at least 7–10 oz (about one cup) every 10–20 minutes. After a workout or competition, drink 24 oz (3 cups) per pound of body weight lost through sweat.

Working in the heat

Firefighters, contractors, miners, farmers, laborers, to name a few, are highly susceptible to heat-related illness when the temperature climbs. If you work in hot environment, whether indoors or out, the key to avoiding heat-related illness is to follow the general guidelines – gradually build up your tolerance to heat over 5-7 days, hydrate, take breaks in the shade or air-conditioning, use fans when possible, avoid exertion during the hottest parts of the day, pace yourself and know the signs of heat-related illness.

Drinking enough water is critical. In the course of a day's work in the heat, you may produce as much as 2 to 3 gallons of sweat. To avoid dehydration, make sure your water intake during the workday is about equal to the amount of sweat produced. Most workers exposed to hot conditions drink less fluids than needed because they’re just not thirsty. Do your best to drink 5 to 7 ounces of fluids every 15 to 20 minutes to replenish the necessary fluids in your body.

For more information, visit the Pennsylvania Medical Society’s Family Health and Wellness website at www.myfamilywellness.