Heatwave in India:
Heat waves frequently occur in India during the summers. Over the northern sections of the country, there are usually five to six heat wave episodes every year. Such an event can extend for weeks, happen successively, and have a significant population impact. According to official data, more than 22,000 individuals died from heatwaves between 1992 and 2015. The actual cost, according to experts, would be substantially greater.
Delhi is more susceptible to the negative effects of extreme heat waves, finds a recent study by Ramit Debnath and colleagues at the University of Cambridge. Apparently, more than 90 per cent of India is in the “extremely cautious” or “danger” range of heatwave impacts. According to the study, it is the first to take into account “heat index” , which assesses how hot it feels on average for a person to be in a given environment when humidity and air temperature are combined. This index was used to determine what needed to be changed in India’s methods for assessing its climate change vulnerability.
Additionally, the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, and Andhra Pradesh have been experiencing heatwave in 2024, with daytime temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius, or roughly 5C over the seasonal average, being recorded consecutively in these areas.
Connection between Diabetes and Heat wave:
High heat can have an adverse effect on sugar levels and thus diabetics should be extra cautious, according to Dr. Tushar Tayal who is the lead consultant in the internal medicine department at the CK Birla Hospital in Gurugram. The expert claims that high environmental temperatures produce increased perspiration, which when combined with low water intake can cause a person to get dehydrated, which leads the blood to thicken and the level of sugars to rise. Continued exposure to heat triggers the release of stress hormones like cortisol and vasopressin, which in turn boost the body’s natural production of glucose, raising blood sugar levels.
It is thus crucial to monitor blood sugar levels every alternative day and consult the concerned doctor to adjust insulin dosage accordingly.
The efficacy of insulin may be impacted due to improper storage of the drug. The Insulin may have been damaged if it has been exposed to heat and becomes unclear, grainy, or has a brownish tint, warns Dr. Sandeep Reddy, senior endocrinologist at Kamineni Hospitals in Hyderabad. It is thus advisable to keep insulin in a cool environment, like a refrigerator or a chilled bag, to avoid the negative impacts of heat. However it is important to avoid the insulin from freezing. It is thus crucial to consult a doctor for guidance if unsure about the effectives of the insulin.
If blood sugar levels are not consistently monitored, elevated temperatures during the summer may also affect how insulin is used by the body, resulting in fluctuations in the blood sugar level, according to Dr. Shibani Ramchandran.
Diabetes educator and nutritionist Khushboo Jain Tibrewala claims that diabetics are more prone to heat stroke and are likely to get dehydrated more quickly than non-diabetics. This is primarily due to how diabetes can affect blood vessels and nerves over time. As a result, the body’s natural cooling mechanisms are impaired. Long term kidney failure can be one of the consequences as well. As a result, it’s critical for diabetics to keep their body temperature stable during the summer.
The expert suggested a list of cooling food items to consume during the heat to maintain blood sugar levels, including, coconut water, watermelon, citrus fruits, curd, cucumber, tomatoes, sugar free aam panna, kokum juice, etc. On the other hand, alcohol and too many cups of tea and coffee should be avoided, since they may increase the risk of dehydration and increase blood sugar levels.
