TO KEEP COOL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 27 January 1939, Page 8

TO KEEP COOL

IN THE SUMMERTIME CLOTHING AND EATING. Usually in the summer time in Masterton heat waves come in which the temperature of the air in the hottest part of the day rises to 85 or 90 degrees. With the heat there is usually great uumidity, which means that there is a large amount of water vapour in the air, so that the body’s cooling system is handicapped in its work. F«r the body is cooled principally by evaporation of moisture from the surface of the skin, and this evaporation does not readily take place in an atmosphere that is already charged almost to saturation point with steam. Fresh Ah' and Green Food, As the means of keeping cool lies in evaporation, clothing should be regulated to allow evaporation to have the fullest possible scope. As the more the air comes in contact with the skin, the greater will be the evaporation, clothing should be light, porous and loose. If a complete change of clothing were made on arriving at work, then the worker would be greatly the cooler for this. It should not be difficult to change coat and collar at least. This may seem to apply to men’s clothing only: but a woman’s summer outfit is as a rule so rational that to aim at improving it would be but gilding a lily. As moving air leads to more evaporation than still, to sit in a draught is cool and healthy. As open air is fresher than indoor, to lunch beneath a tree in a park is a habit worthy of cultivation. During leisure hours, as much time as possible should be spent out of doors. A short period, say ten to twenty minutes, of brisk exercise, followed by a bath and a complete change of clothing, pays a good dividend of qool refreshment. It is better to be energetic and sweat than to be slothful and stew; for the “mad dogs of Englishmen” who “go out in the midday sun” seem to thrive and flourish in hot climates. Fats and starches are definitely “heating’ foods, and can be reduced with advantage. Suitable foods for hot weather are fruits, cheese, milk, green and root vegetables, and ice creams, with some eggs, fish and lean meats. It is best to eat three fairly equal meals and to drink little and often.