DENVER — With three days of 100-degree heat anticipated in Colorado, Sarah Garcia and her 1-year-old son Jonathan are finding every reason to cool off.
“We’re here for a play date,” said Garcia as they pulled up to Central Park’s splash pad in Denver.
Before spending any time in the sun, Garcia is taking every precaution with her little one.
“We have baby-safe sunscreen, hat, his little water outfit. I know it's hard to see him in a long-sleeve, but it's best for him,” explained Garcia.
Record-breaking temperatures are expected in Denver and across Colorado over the next several days. Dr. Genevieve Hillis, an emergency medicine physician with UCHealth, said you can start preparing your family now.
“Lots and lots of fluid ahead of time. Anything that has sugar or salt can help you retain that fluid ahead of time and hold onto it a little bit more,” said Dr. Hillis.
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Denver weather: Dangerous heat, record-breaking temps to grip Colorado
UCHealth hospitals are anticipating a surge in patients seeking help for heat-related illnesses, especially those who are unhoused or work outdoors. Dr. Hillis explained there are three different categories of heat injury: Heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Heat cramps: “That’s the most mild. All of us have probably experienced that at some point. So, we’re outside, we’re running around, hiking, biking, just enjoying Colorado. It’s hot and the sun here is really strong. And so when any of us get to the point where we start feeling a little overly fatigued, we start getting muscle cramps, that’s kind of the first stage. And it’s because of water loss and salt loss most commonly, but it’s easy to fix. You can get in the shade and get out of the sun and drink some fluids with some salt and sugar in them and take a rest and take it easy,” said Dr. Hillis.
Heat exhaustion: “That's when folks start to get the heat cramp kind of symptoms, but they don't pay attention to them. So, they keep going and they keep hiking, they keep climbing, doing what they're doing. A lot of times they'll come in and they'll have headaches and nausea, dizziness, might feel like they're about to pass out… They'll start to get tachycardia. Their heart will start to beat a lot faster because it's trying to compensate for all the water loss and salt loss,” said Dr. Hillis.
Heat stroke: “Heat stroke is life-threatening. You can die from being overheated. And that's where your natural body ability to compensate from being out in the heat and sweating and all those kinds of things and try to regulate it, we just can't compensate anymore. Core body temperature goes up, folks get confused, a lot of times they will pass out, they'll get nauseous, vomiting, diarrhea, seizures are usually the last step,” explained Dr. Hillis.
Once someone has a heat injury, they're more prone to one in the future.
“They overwhelm the body’s ability. So basically, they do damage to the peripheral nervous system,” said Dr. Hillis.
To keep you and your family safe, she suggests getting all outdoor activities done before noon. Then, stay out of the heat until sundown.
