Drinking water alone not enough to prevent heat stroke

PETALING JAYA: Drinking lots of water alone may not be enough to prevent heat stroke, as there are other risk factors involved.
"Sometimes, people think when it is hot and humid outside, it is okay as long as they drink enough water. But even so, when doing activities, your body produces heat, and not releasing it will not help," Manipal Hospitals' Dr. Kunalan Suppiah, who is an internal medicine expert, said when met by theSun today.
He said the public needs to understand that sometimes external factors, such as high temperature and humidity, prevent the release of heat from the body through sweat, due to too much water in the air, leading to rise in the body temperature.
Explaining that everyone could be a victim of heat stroke, he said vulnerable individuals such as the elderly, children, and those who are on certain medication are more susceptible to suffer one, hence they should practise extra caution.
Kunalan, who is an avid golfer, said he had experienced seeing elderly people playing golf towards the afternoon getting cramps in their legs, a sign of heat exhaustion.
"Different groups of people have different risks, and those who are at risk should know and understand their limit," he added
On the recent deaths of a volunteer serviceman trainee and a police trainee constable due to heat stroke, Kunalan said all institutions and agencies should have clear guidelines given by health experts in the field on how to prevent such incidents.