African heat is back: can science help us?

Better a hot or cold shower? How to use the fan well? A short guide to save yourself from the African heat wave scheduled for the weekend.

E’ estate: the skin gets tanned, the days get longer, the summer session rages and blood pressure drops, just like the desire to leave the house before dinner. According to 3b meteo forecasts, another hot weekend is coming. This time, to haunt theItaly will be a new wave of African heat: in the south, there will even be temperature peaks of 40°C!

If you live more than three kilometers away from the sea and you are one undergraduate, you know what it means to fight against the fires of hell. Thousands of tears, dozens of polar showers and fan at maximum power: you are sure this is it tactics more correct to face the African heat? Can, the science, confirm or reverse the situation? Let’s find out together.

Cold shower or hot shower? This is the dilemma

I know: when the thermometer marks 40 degrees in the shade, your biggest wish is to take a long, icy shower. Sorry to disappoint you: according to the science, there is no choice anymore wrong!

To come to our aid, this time, is there biology. The Human Body is a machine: to function well, the body temperature internal must be around 37 ° C. In order for the latter to remain constant – even in extreme climatic situations – the mechanism of omeostasi. In short, the body regulates all its functions in order to counteract the action of external factors, preserving the optimal state.

An external factor, for example, is the water jet of a cold shower on our skin, which instantly makes “compressBlood vessels. After its balance has been altered, the body activates itself to reach optimal conditions again, increasing the heartbeat. Once the cold shower is over, this latter factor causes an altered perception of heat and greater sweating.

Do one hot shower, however, it is equally deleterious: if you suffer from hypotension, in fact, the risk of having dangerous dizziness and fainting is always around the corner. The best choice to fight the African heat is to opt for one lukewarm shower, so as not to abruptly activate the mechanism omeostasi. Did you take note?

Fan: how to best use it if you are not alone in the middle of the African heat wave?

Have a constant breeze all to yourself in the days of African heat it is a real pleasure. Sometimes, however, it is not possible to have exclusivity on the fan, especially if it is the only one available in the house. If you really have to share yours, why not do it the way anymore correct e functional?

If you own a fan and a much warmer room than the rest of your home, you might consider using the former as hot air extractor. How? Pointing the air flow due to the movement of the blades in the “cooler” direction (for example, towards the access door to the room if the corridor is better insulated). This allows for a larger air mass to move and at slightly better temperatures.

Clearly, the power ofcooling effect towards the room, it depends on both the gap termico between the hot and cold environment, both from the type of fan used (those of type industrial are certainly more suitable for this use).

Unless you have a stylish pool villa Marissa Cooper, these two useful tricks from the science can help you defeat the African heat. Before starting to complain, however, stop for a moment to reflect: at least for now we are not in lockdown!