How To Keep Cool In The Summer

Wondering how to keep cool during a heatwave? It’s important because hot weather can seriously mess with your health and well-being. Luckily, there are some simple steps you can take to beat the heat when things get sweltering.

How To Keep Cool While Moving Around?

First off, dodge the sun between 11am and 3pm – that’s when it’s usually scorchio. Either hang indoors or find a shady spot outside. A sunhat can provide some relief if you do need to be outdoors to help prevent both sunburn and overheating.

Something as obvious as walking on the shady side of the street makes all the difference. And if you are someone who usually adopts a brisk walking style…slow down! Brisk walking increases your blood flow which generates heat.

What Food and Drink Keeps You Cool?

Make sure you stay hydrated by having liquids, whether it’s an icy cold drink or a hot cuppa! Yes, bizarrely, a study conducted at the University of Ottawa found that sipping a hot drink on a warm day can actually help cool you down – as long as you’re not already sweating. This is because hot beverages kickstart your body’s sweat response (without significantly increasing your core temperature). As a result, the sweat evaporates from your skin’s surface, giving you a sensation of cooling down.

Though a cheeky beer or two might help hydrate you, don’t go overboard on the booze! Alcohol has a dehydrating effect plus makes it harder for your body to regulate its temperature effectively.

Choosing water-rich foods like strawberries, grapes, cucumber, lettuce, apples and watermelon can also help keep you refreshed and keep you hydrated. Plus, as an added bonus, they are full of vitamins! And finally – believe it or not – spicy foods can make you sweat which actually helps cool you down.

Although do lay off the late-night snacks. Eating before bed can crank up your core temperature, making it tougher to catch those Z’s.

What Kind of Clothing will Keep You Cool?

When it comes to clothing, the evidence on whether wearing light or dark colours makes a difference is a bit mixed. But loose, baggy or flowing fabrics let cool air circulate around your body and will help. You also want to look out for natural fabrics: cotton, linen, bamboo (yes, bamboo! We like the options at Earth Wardrobe), and silk. These help moisture evaporate and don’t lock in odours the same way man-made or synthetic fabrics sometimes do.

Avoid polyester, nylon and lycra. These don’t let your skin breathe and are often used in tight-fitting clothing both of which make you feel even hotter!

How Do You keep The House Cool?

Now, before you fling open all the windows to cool down, think twice. If it’s hotter outside, you’ll just be releasing the cooler air and letting the heat in! British homes are built to retain heat and usually have effective insulation meaning once the heat is in the room, it is difficult to get rid of it.

During the day keep those curtains drawn in sun-facing rooms. When the evening arrives, and the air outside cools, open the windows – especially of any bedrooms – to create a breeze through the rooms and to allow any built-up warm air to escape.

One of the easiest hacks to chill out is taking advantage of evaporation to cool things down. Jumping in a cold shower or a dip in the pool can help you cool down fast. If a full-body dip is out of the question, putting just your hands or feet in cold water can quickly cool you down. Wrists and ankles both have lots of blood vessels close to the skin meaning cooling these will give you almost immediate cooling relief. If you are working from home or even relaxing in the (shady spot!) of the garden then putting your feet in a tub of cold water can be very refreshing – maybe even add a few ice cubes!

Back in the day, folks used to put water-filled jars or damp sheets near breezy spots to cool things down. You can even try it with a fan by blowing air over a bowl of ice or a cool wet sheet.

But speaking of fans, they are a bit hit or miss. They’re great up to about 35°C (95°F), but above that, they might just be blowing hot air around, which isn’t helpful and could actually increase dehydration. Plus, they churn out some heat themselves!

Looking ahead, it may just be time to invest in an air conditioning unit. New air conditioning are more energy efficient and quieter than ever before. As well as their superb air cooling qualities they also purify air which can help alleviate allergies.

Cooling Air Conditioning

If you are considering air conditioning, get in touch with the team at PDF Gas and Heating for more information. We install and service air conditioning units across Reading, Berkshire, South Oxfordshire and the surrounding areas. We’ll also be pleased to give you a no-obligation quotation for supplying and installing your new air conditioning – although we may need to carry out a home survey first.

You can call the team at PDF Gas and Heating on 0118 995 2100, email us at [email protected] or complete our quick online enquiry form to request a call back.