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By Bobbi Burger Brunoehler of Bobbisbargains.
It is hot and a couple of days ago my husband’s friend went to the hospital for heat exhaustion. Talk about a bummer and budget buster!
Benjamin Franklin said that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” I agree with Ben. My personal financial guidelines are not about saving a few dollars here and there on items I buy. They are about saving many thousands of dollars on things that I DON’T have to buy.
Avoiding heat exhaustion is an excellent example of my personal philosophy. Note, I am not a trained medical practitioner and this post does not constitute medical advice, just practical tips I’ve learned.
The average cost of a hospital stay was $1,690 in 2007, according to a Census Bureau press release from last month. Going to the hospital also means missed days at work that you don’t get paid for. There can also be the expense of emergency transport and child care if you are a care giver, not to mention how horrible you feel. Going to the hospital for heat exhaustion is a ridiculous amount of money to pay for something that is SO easily avoided.
Symptoms of heat exhaustion
- profuse sweating or no sweating when you should be sweating
- dizziness and weakness, nausea and vomiting
- rapid heartbeat
- flushing of the skin
- headaches, muscle cramps
- extreme fatigue
These are the warning signs that you need to do something quick to avoid a major problem. Heat exhaustion left unattended can lead to possibly fatal heat stroke. Heat exhaustion is caused by the depletion of fluid, salt, potassium and electrolytes in the body.
How to prevent heat exhaustion
- Drink half of your body weight in ounces of water a day. If you weigh 140 pounds, drink 70 ounces of water.
- Along with the water, you need to have salt, potassium and cell salts. Some experts recommend that for every 16 ounceos f water you drink, you need 500 milligrams of salt. The body uses potassium to help regulate salt through the process of urination. So, you actually could take potassium every time you urinate. A good place to get great deals on supplements online is Vitacost.com.
- Kool Off is a product that is a quick, easy and effective heat exhaustion preventative that you spray on your face, neck and under the tongue. It replenishes the body’s supply of salt, potassium, cell salts and oxygen. One bottle lasts a long time. You can keep it in your purse, glove compartment or backback.
- Another of my favorites is a cool downz neck bandana. When you soak these in water, they expand and stay moist and cool. You tie them around your neck and this cools the blood as it goes through your neck arteries. Natural body air conditioning. Pretty nifty and surely thrifty.
I think it is worth spending a few bucks to keep yourself cool and prevent spending thousands of dollars taking care of the effects of heat exhaustion. It’s little pieces of advice like this that have kept me on my budget and out of debt.
Do you have a stay cool tip?
