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How to stay cool this summer

One can actually feel cool and comfortable even if the soaring temperature is smashing all records.

Smita Mishra
Sweltering, scorching, scalding and agonizing- summers are very much around and we are again wishing for the cool, balmy winters. But the season is going to stay for quite sometime and we have to find means to moderate its effects. One can actually feel cool and comfortable even if the soaring temperature is smashing all records. Follow these easy tips and stay cool and comfortable this summer.
  • Wear loose-fitting clothing, preferably of a light color. Completely avoid black and dark colours.
  • Cotton, linen and khadi not only keep your body temperature low but they also look trendy in summers.
  • Drink as many glasses of water as you can. Remember to drink even when you are not thirsty. This will help maintain your body temperature. Add glucose, electorate, lime juice to enhance the effect.
  • Keep vases filled with water/ice in your room, this will reduce the circulating heat.
  • Take frequent baths or showers with cool or tepid water. Also wash your face frequently with ice cold water.
  • Avoid caffeine and alcohol as these will promote dehydration.
  • Eat like a bird. Take small lighter meals with plenty of fruits and vegetables included.
  • Avoid fast foods and fried stuff. Go for seasonal fare as they offer best solution to all summer woes.
  • When you do exercise, allow yourself to sweat freely. This way the body detoxifies itself and pores of the body open, enabling your skin to breathe.
  • Instead of dabbing your body with heavy moisturizers and sunscreens that tend to block your pores, carry a trendy parasol, if possible.
  • Keep hair up off the neck, either by cutting it short or by twisting it up or tying it in a ponytail.
  • Hand attractive chicks of khus fiber around your house and keep them soaked in water.
  • Keep potted plants everywhere. These green plants contribute greatly in lowering the temperature of your house.
  • Plant a creeper and allow it to climb on that part of the house which receives maximum heat from the sun.
  • Keep the curtains down during that day and make sure they are made of heavy fabric and are preferably green in colour.
  • Turn off anything else that gets hot. Try to minimize having light bulbs and anything that generates heat on.
  • Avoid getting out in the sun, if you can. Choose cooler time of the day for any outside work.
  • If you have to get out, do not do so without intake of large quantity of fluids; take a small water bottle with you and keep yourself covered from the harsh sun and hot winds.
  • Avoid frequently getting in and out from the sun.
  • Do not exert much during summers. Balance between rest and work adequately.
  • Using mint-flavoured soaps, face wash and shampoos are great way of keeping a coll skin.
  • Go swimming and boating or just walk along a water source if possible.
  • Keep the house ventilated.
  • Indoors, use CFL bulbs as incandescent ones are big sources of heat.
  • Try some yoga to feel cool. 1. Draw out the tongue. Roll it up from the sides to form a tube like opening. Slowly suck the air through it and fill the lungs completely. After full inhalation withdraw the tongue and close the mouth. Hold the breath for sometime and then slowly exhale through the nose. Repeat required number of times. 2. Breathe like a dog by hanging your tongue out. This has an immediate cooling effect.
  • Look at pictures of ice, mountains and hills and read books on Everest, Poles and Penguins. You will feel better and cooler mentally. And last but not the least, pray that the season passes off quickly and Monsoon comes soon!