With Doha and other places around the country experiencing high temperatures, the authorities concerned have advised people to follow precautionary measures to stay safe and healthy in the prevailing conditions.
Heat-related advisories have been issued by Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) as well as the Qatar Met department.
In an advisory on social media, HMC urged people to beware of prolonged exposure to direct sunlight or excessive heat. "Heat remains within the body, causing damage to vital organs," it said.
In other cases, it causes headaches and dehydration, which, in turn, leads to painful muscle cramps, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, accelerated respiration and Tachycardia (irregular heartbeat), HMC explained.
"In the presence of these symptoms, the affected person should be moved to a cool area and put to lay on their back and given a large quantity of fluids. Cold packs should be used to lower body temperature," it added.
On ways to cope with the summer heat, HMC said people should "wear light-coloured and cotton clothing, eat plenty of fruits and drink plenty of water and other fluids".
On its part, the Met department has stressed that outdoor workers should take rest breaks in shaded areas as a safety precaution in hot weather conditions. "Don't leave children unattended in a vehicle," it says in an advisory on social media.
The Met department, too, has highlighted the importance of drinking adequate quantity of fluids as well as wearing light-coloured and light-weight clothes to reflect sunlight.
As reported in Gulf Times, the PHCC, too, had recently issued advice on healthy practices during the summer to avoid contracting any diseases in this season.
Mouhdi al-Hajri, head of the Nutrition Department at PHCC, shared insights into what constituted suitable food during the summer and what should be avoided in high temperatures.
While advising people to drink plenty of fluids during this season, she says those who are not too fond of water can add some lemon, mint, slices of orange or cucumber to water to make its taste more to their liking.
Al-Hajri recommends drinking at least 12 cups of water a day to make up for the body fluids lost through excessive sweating. She also reiterates that sweets, cold beverages such as carbonated drinks that contain sugar, and foods such as ice cream are not healthy options.
She also recommends eating fruits, preferably as whole ones rather than as juice to benefit from their fibre content.
She also advises people to decrease their consumption of fried foods as much as possible to avoid being lethargic and any potential weight gain.
It is recommended that one sleeps for at least seven hours in the night as this will have a positive impact on appetite in the morning. Also, it is important to engage in sports activities such as jogging, walking and swimming.
