Keeping Cool This Summer

When temperatures reach record highs, I become record-breakingly grumpy. I hate feeling sweaty, hot, creased, crushed and uncomfortable so I’ve been researching ways to stay cool. These ones do work and will help prevent cramps, exhaustion and heat stroke…

Drink plenty of water and sports drinks with electrolytes.

Eat small meals and eat more often. The larger the meal, the more metabolic heat your body creates breaking down the food. Avoid foods that are high in protein, which increase metabolic heat. Also it means less time in front of a hot stove.

Run your wrists under a cold tap for five seconds each every couple of hours. Because a main vein passes through this area, it helps cool the blood.

Keep plastic bottles of water in the freezer and take one when you go out. As the ice melts, you’ll have a cool drink for longer. Fill a spray bottle with water and a few drops of essential oils and keep it in the fridge – great for spraying on your face and body when you come in from the sun.

Eat spicy food. Although this may be the last thing you fancy in hot weather, curries and chillies can stimulate heat receptors in the mouth, enhance circulation and cause sweating, which cools the body down. Drinking tea also helps.

Wear loose, lightweight, pale cotton clothes. Heat is trapped by synthetic fibres but cotton absorbs perspiration and its evaporation causes you to feel cooler. The light colours reflect the sun's radiation. I find a damp scarf round my neck helps – in the bush I even shower fully-dressed and let the clothes dry on me.

Take a tepid bath or shower just below body temperature, especially before bedtime. Although a cold shower might sound more tempting, your body generates heat afterwards to compensate for the heat loss.

You may be longing for a cold beer or a chilled white wine spritzer. But you should avoid alcohol because it dehydrates the body. You are better off with mineral water or low-sugar fizzy drinks. Also, avoid drinks with caffeine such as coffee and colas. These increase the metabolic heat in the body.

Try storing your toners and body lotions in the fridge. A great boost for hot, sore feet. Put a couple of slices of cucumber straight from the fridge over your eyes for a refreshing few minutes.

Slow down and avoid strenuous activity that will stimulate your body and raise its core temperature. If you must go jogging, do it during the coolest part of the day, which is usually before 7am.

Sit back, close your eyes and picture snow. Research has shown that the body reacts to these daydreams, reducing its overall temperature.