📚 Read Also: Remembering My First Summer as a New Muslim

Food Poisoning

Nothing will ruin a nice summer day faster than food poisoning. Most commonly mild food poisoning is the case and in many times it goes unnoticed. To avoid food poisoning:

Keep perishable foods cool.

Cover food.

Cook meat completely.

Use spices as a natural preservative and anti bacterial agent.

Dehydration

Use Summer Time to Fortify Your Soul

Most people don’t drink enough water and during the summer this can be compounded because of the water loss experienced due to the heat. Most of what people drink, in the form of juice, coffee, black tea and soda are diuretics.

Also, people who consume a diet high in animal protein, highly processed foods and large quantities of sugar all require the body to take in more water to digest it.

Many of the headaches and back pain people experience can be attributed to dehydration. These types of headaches are literally dehydration of the brain.

The vertebrae of the back use water as part of the buffering fluid between vertebrae to prevent compression. Dehydration dries up this fluid and the result is back pain.

Once the cycle of chronic dehydration is established, the body may no longer signal dehydration. The body cannot remove waste without water. Disease, especially autoimmune conditions, are believed to be caused by an overload of toxins in the body (Batmanghelidi, 2001).

In the Pool

Summertime is water recreation time and days can be spent swimming.

In various studies, it has been shown that the chemicals used to disinfect swimming pools (primarily chlorine) causes respiratory issues (Mrvos et. al., 1993; Potts, 1996).

So try to avoid swimming every day and in indoor pools.

The other safety issues involved with swimming pools all tend to be hygienic or with consideration for other people using to pool.

These issues can be resolved by:

Have small children use swim diapers.

Remind older children to use the bathroom every couple of hours.

Don’t drink pool water.

Make sure that the pool is cleaned regularly.

Look to see if the pool “looks” clean.

If many people are using the pool, you probably don’t want to use it, find another pool or go at off hours.

Vector-borne Illnesses

A vector-borne illness is an illness carried by an animal like a mosquito or a flea. In tropical parts of the world, mosquitoes and the pathogens they harbor are well-known vectors that cause many people to fall ill or die, particularly during summer months.

There are a few simple steps that people can take to protect themselves from bites:

Use window screens.

Use a screen door.

Insure that these screens are free from holes.

Make sure that doors aren’t left open.

Use a bed net/tent and insure it is free of holes (UNICEF believes that this simple measure could save thousands of children’s lives).

Remove stagnant/standing water from around the home, this is a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

In more temperate climates, many people head out to the great outdoors for camping and hiking. This is the realm of the flea and tick and the diseases they carry.

In the Eastern United States, the concern is a lime disease that is carried by deer ticks. In the west, California, in Marin and Sonoma counties and the Rocky Mountains, the concern is the bubonic plague carried by flees.

Wherever you are, there are many other disease-carrying vectors that can be foiled by taking simple precautions:

Wear long pants.

Wear a long sleeved shirt.

Don’t feed animals.

Remove clothing and look for ticks around sock lines, waist lines, and skin folds.

Remove ticks carefully, without squeezing, with tweezers.

References:

• Batmanghelidi, F., M.D. Your Body’s Many Cries for Water. (Global Health Solutions: Falls Church), 2001. Mrvos R, Dean BS, Krenzelok EP. “Home Exposures to Chlorine/Chloramine Gas: Review of 216 Cases.” (S Med J. 1993 86(6) p 654-7). “NBA hosts announcement of Gates funding for ‘Nothing But Nets’ malaria campaign.” Jan 4, 2007.
• Potts, J. “Factors Associated with Respiratory Problems in Swimmers.” (Sports Med 1996 21(4) p 556 61).
• Schleicher, Peter M.D. and Mohamed Saleh M.D. Black Cumin: The Magical Egyptian Herb for Allergies, Asthma, Skin Conditions, and Immune Disorders. (Healing Arts Press: Rochester, Vermont) 2000.

This article is from our archive, originally published on an earlier date