Warmth can take larger toll on folks with sure well being circumstances
Up to date: 5:13 PM EDT Jun 21, 2024
WGAL NEWS EIGHT. WELL, TODAY IS DAY FIVE OF HEAT HERE IN THE SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY, BUT THAT HEAT POSES SOME HEALTH CONCERNS FOR MANY PEOPLE. I’M JOINED NOW BY DOCTOR VALDA CROWDER, EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT SITE DIRECTOR AT UPMC COMMUNITY OSTEOPATHIC. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US, DOCTOR. I KNOW WE GOT A LOT TO GET TO IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, BUT I WILL TELL YOU, I THINK THIS IS AN IMPORTANT CONVERSATION BECAUSE HE CAN ALREADY CAUSE A PROBLEM FOR THOSE WHO AREN’T STRUGGLING WITH AN ILLNESS. SO WHAT TYPE OF RISK DOES IT POSE FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE DEALING WITH A WORSENING MEDICAL CONDITION? YEAH, SO THOSE FOLKS WITH DIABETES AND KIDNEY DISEASE AND, UH, ALSO HEART DISEASE ARE MORE LIKELY TO HAVE, UH, PROBLEMS WITH AUTOREGULATION AND, UM, OF THEIR BODY TEMPERATURE. SO THEY’RE MORE LIKELY TO, UH, EXPERIENCE SOME SORT OF HEAT EXHAUSTION OR HEAT STROKE OR HEAT EMERGENCY. AND SPEAKING SPECIFICALLY ON DIABETES, I WANT TO GO TO THESE NUMBERS RIGHT HERE, BECAUSE MORE THAN 38 MILLION AMERICANS ARE ESTIMATED TO HAVE DIABETES. AND ACCORDING TO THE AMERICAN DIABETES ASSOCIATION, MORE THAN 1 MILLION PEOPLE HAVE DIABETES IN PENNSYLVANIA. SO HOW DOES A HEAT WAVE LIKE WE’RE EXPERIENCING RIGHT NOW AFFECT SOMEONE WITH THAT PARTICULAR CONDITION? YEAH. SO DIABETICS USUALLY HAVE WHAT THEY CALL SMALL VASCULAR DISEASE. SO IT’S THROUGHOUT THEIR BODY. SO THAT AGAIN CAUSES PROBLEMS WITH THEM BEING ABLE TO REGULATE, BEING ABLE TO SWEAT THE WAY THEY NORMALLY CAN SWEAT, LIKE THE WAY A PERSON WITHOUT DIABETES WOULD SWEAT, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR EVAPORATION OF THE HEAT. UM, THE OTHER THING WITH DIABETICS IS A LOT OF DIABETICS ARE ON STATIN DRUGS TO ACTUALLY LOWER THEIR CHOLESTEROL, AND THOSE STATIN DRUGS CAN BE PROTECTIVE. SO I ALWAYS TELL DIABETICS WHEN IT GETS HOT LIKE THIS, MAKE SURE TO TAKE YOUR STATIN DRUGS, BECAUSE THAT IS THE ONE THING THAT CAN INCREASE BLOOD FLOW AND CAN REALLY HELP DURING THIS TIME PERIOD. WELL, YOU WENT STRAIGHT INTO MY NEXT QUESTION BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO SAY AS FAR AS MEDICATION, DOES THAT HEAT HAVE ANY IMPACT ON PEOPLE WHO ARE TAKING THOSE ANTIBIOTICS OVERALL? YEAH. SO THERE ARE SEVERAL CLASSES OF ANTIBIOTICS WHERE THEY’RE MORE LIKELY TO GET EITHER A SUNBURN OR A SUN RASH. UM, AND THOSE ARE USUALLY LIKE YOUR TETRACYCLINES, UM, FLAGYL, WHICH IS ALSO METRONIDAZOLE. UM, ALSO YOUR FLUOROQUINOLONES, LIKE CIPRO OR OFLOXACIN, THOSE SORTS OF MEDICATIONS. SO IT DOESN’T NECESSARILY INCREASE YOUR RISK OF HEAT EXHAUSTION OR HEAT STROKE, BUT IT CAN GIVE YOU A NASTY HEAT RASH OR SUNBURN. AND WHEN IT COMES TO INSULIN AND SAY YOU’RE IN THE CAR FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, YOU’RE TRAVELING SOMEWHERE. WE KNOW IT’S SUMMERTIME. PEOPLE ARE GOING ON VACATION. HOW DO THEY NEED TO TRANSPORT THOSE SORTS OF THINGS? IS THERE ANY TIPS YOU HAVE ON THAT? YEAH. SO YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR YOUR INSULIN STAYS UM, AT A, AT A REFRIGERATED TEMPERATURE, WHETHER OR NOT IT’S ON ICE OR IN A LITTLE COOLER. YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT SORT OF STAYS AT A, AT A REFRIGERATED TEMPERATURE UNTIL IT’S TIME TO ACTUALLY TAKE IT OUT. AND ACTUALLY USE IT, BECAUSE IT CAN BE IT CAN GET QUITE THE MEDICATION CAN GET QUITE WARM IF IT’S OUT, AND THEN IT’S LESS EFFECTIVE. AND OVERALL, YOU KNOW, AS WE CONTINUE TO GO THROUGH THIS HEAT WAVE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS, WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW IF SOMEONE OUT THERE IS WATCHING THIS INTERVIEW, THEY HAVE DIABETES. THEY HAVE ANY MEDICAL CONDITION. WHAT IS THE ONE THING THAT YOU WANT THEM TO TAKE AWAY? SO THEY CAN STAY WELL IN THIS WEATHER? OKAY, I’M GOING TO GIVE YOU TWO. STAY HYDRATED AND AVOID ALCOHOL OKAY. THOSE ARE SOME GOOD TIPS. NOW I KNOW MAY BE HARD FOR SOME FOLKS THOUGH BECAUSE IT’S A LOT OUTSIDE, BUT 4TH OF JULY COMING UP AND ALL THE PICNICS RIGHT I KNOW I KNOW, IT’S GOING TO BE HARD FOR SOME PEOPLE, BUT THAT IS GREAT INFORMATION. ANNE. LISTEN, DOCTOR VALDA CROWDER, THANK YOU SO MUCH F
Warmth can take larger toll on folks with sure well being circumstances
Up to date: 5:13 PM EDT Jun 21, 2024
The warmth can create well being issues for folks with sure circumstances or who take some kinds of treatment.Information 8’s Michael Fuller spoke with a health care provider about who’s in danger and the way they will keep protected. Watch the interview above.
The warmth can create well being issues for folks with sure circumstances or who take some kinds of treatment.
Information 8’s Michael Fuller spoke with a health care provider about who’s in danger and the way they will keep protected. Watch the interview above.