First aid & safety中文
Heat Exhaustion and Heat Stroke: Spot It, Cool It, Prevent It
Heat illness turns from misery to emergency fast. Heat stroke is a true emergency — cool first, then evacuate.
In short
Heat exhaustion: heavy sweating, weakness, dizziness, headache, nausea, cramps, a racing pulse — and the person is still alert. Heat stroke: confusion, collapse, hot skin, a very high body temperature — call emergency services immediately and start cooling without waiting. Prevent both by skipping the midday heat, drinking to thirst and urine color, replacing salt, and resting in shade every 30–60 minutes.
Heat illness can run from "miserable" to "life-threatening" faster than most people expect. Heat stroke is an emergency: cool first, evacuate second.
Telling Them Apart
- Heat exhaustion: heavy sweating, weakness, dizziness, headache, nausea, muscle cramps, rapid heartbeat — the person is still alert.
- Heat stroke: confusion or unconsciousness, unsteady walking, hot skin (the person may actually have stopped sweating), a very high body temperature. Call emergency services immediately (911 in the US, 112 in Europe, 120 in mainland China) — and start cooling while you wait.
- Risk stacks: high heat + high humidity + altitude + hard exertion. Being ill, sleep-deprived, or on certain medications adds more.
What to Do
- Heat exhaustion: stop moving, get to shade, loosen clothing, give fluids (only if the person is alert and can swallow), cool with fanning or a wet towel, and rest until symptoms are fully gone. Don't push straight back onto the trail.
- Heat stroke: don't wait. Move to shade, strip extra clothing, and cool with everything you have — cold-water immersion, continuous dousing, ice packs to the neck, armpits, and groin — while fanning. Never give fluids to someone who can't swallow. Evacuate as fast as possible.
- No alcohol rubs. No pouring water into an unconscious person's mouth.
Prevention
- Avoid the hottest window, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. — start early and finish early.
- Drink by thirst and urine color, not after you're parched; when sweating heavily, replace salt too (salty snacks or electrolytes) — don't drink plain water alone.
- Hat, sun protection, light-colored breathable clothing; take a shade break every 30–60 minutes.
- Build margin into the plan: on hot days, cut distance and ascent by 20%, and change "must reach" into "get as far as we safely can."
Common Mistakes
- Treating heat stroke as "just heat exhaustion — rest a minute and it'll pass."
- Water without salt, and wondering why you feel worse.
- Grinding through the noon heat to make miles.
This is not medical advice. Altered consciousness, seizures, or collapse mean calling for rescue immediately.