This has been a summer of sweltering heat with temperatures hitting over 30 degrees in June. Now, another heatwave is set to sweep across Britain throughout July.
With two Met Office warnings issued over the extreme heat, people are being asked to look out for sunburn and heat exhaustion.
Public Health England has advised people to stay out of the sun and avoid activities like exercise over the next few days to prevent your body from overheating.
It might feel like it's too hot to function. However, there are some easy tricks to keep your body and surroundings cool amid the blistering heat.
Tips to cool down in a heatwave
There are plenty of things you can do to instantly cool yourself down:
- Close the windows and shut out the sun
- Run your wrists under the tap
- Roll up some damp flannels and pop them in the freezer. When you go out, take them with you in a plastic bag.
- If you have an electric fan, place a bowl of ice in front of it to help cool down the air
Cool down pressure points
This method has been around for some time yet many are unaware of it.
Experts recommend either putting an ice cube or running cold water on your pulse points to instantly cool you down.
Your pulse points are your wrists or the sides of your neck.
The instant relief is thanks to the blood vessels located in those areas, which are close to the surface of your skin, with the cold of the ice bringing your body temperature down much quicker.
What to eat in a heatwave
What you eat can also have a big impact on your overall body temperature.
By reducing your portion size your body does not have to work as hard to digest the food, which means a cooler temperature all round.
Foods like watermelon and cucumbers not only help with keeping you cool but also provide that much-needed hydration.
It may not be the healthiest of foods, but getting stuck into your favourite ice cream has also been shown to instantly help to cool you down.
It’s a no brainer too that when the heat hits, so does the dehydration.
For this reason, experts strongly recommend avoiding caffeinated drinks such as tea, coffee and cola as this increases dehydration symptoms.
Drinks lots of water - at least eight glasses - and avoid tea or coffee, because caffeine will dehydrate you.
How to sleep in a heatwave
It can be hard to get some shut-eye during those muggy nights, but there are a few tricks you can try.
Just as you would in the winter, try using a hot water bottle and turning it into a cold water bottle.
Freeze it, though, rather than fill it with boiling water, and sit with it against your feet.
Your feet and ankles are particularly sensitive to heat, as they have lots of pulse points, so popping something cool against them will initiate a cool-down effect throughout the rest of your body.
