Travel Health and Fitness - Air conditioning and hot weather & perspiration




AjedrecístaBritánico
May 11, 12, 8:55 pm
I always have had problems with weather surpassing approximately 18 C if I go to destinations where the weather is as such. I usually perspire profusely if the temperature is 19 C or higher, and then I must turn on the air conditioning or go to an air conditioned building. But then in some cases I catch cold and it is annoying for the rest of the holiday. This has happened when I went to Madrid, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Toronto, Mexico, various islands in the West Indies, France, Florida, and others. The same pattern of the weather being too hot, I perspire profusely, I turn on air conditioning, and catch cold. The other option is I sweat profusely and not turn on air conditioning and not catch cold but I am too overheated and still perspiring. I wish to go to Chile and Australia/NZ in the next few years and their weather is not the coldest in the world. Another side effect of the hot weather is insomnia; if the temperatures rise too high I might not be able to sleep until 07h00 if it is a bad case, and throughout the holiday I will be sleep-deprived.

The only places that I have been to on holiday where I have not perspired profusely have been in Norway where it was about 8 C, and Québec City in winter, when it was -30 C. I plan to continue travelling, but I require to address this problem of warm weather since my body seems unable to enjoy the holiday if the weather is beyond 18 C. Should I enter an air-conditioned building very frequently when walking to do sightseeing? I was in Canada recently where the weather went to the 20s, and I perspired profusely again and the sun shining was very unpleasant. The 20s C feel like how 35 C would feel to someone else. When I travel, somehow others consider those temperatures (>18 C) to be pleasant, but I consider those temperatures a serious burden, because not only do I perspire profusely, but the heat drains my energy. I can handle cold weather, such as winter in Québec City, which I thought was not bad, and snowy weather. Overcast and cloudy weather like in the UK is very easy for me, but whilst I can handle what others consider very cold temperatures easily, I cannot handle too well >18 C. Since I want to go to Chile and Australia/NZ, I need to learn how to stop the massive perspiring or somehow handle the hot weather.

For example, when the temperature increased into the 20s in Ottawa, I had to turn my air conditioning and leave it on for almost an entire day to feel comfortable. And when I went to Montréal and it was 11 C and raining outside, I had to turn the air conditioning unit to 15 C.

I am going to Paris in a few months, so I need to know how to handle the hot weather in September. When I went to France in 2005, it was almost 40 C I believe, near the Mulhouse region, and I remember that I was extremely unpleasant, perspiring as bad as if I were in the West Indies. It was also difficult for me to go outside because the weather was so hot. In that holiday, I had to change my shirt three times in one day because I perspired so much. I even had to go to the local department store in town to buy more undershirts because I ran out since I had to change shirts from the excessive perspiration.

I have no air conditioning in my house, so if the temperatures rise to high, I will suffer. But if I am on holiday, it is different because one should be comfortable during holiday, so I would hope to not perspire so badly and have insomnia due to hot weather during holiday.


obscure2k
May 11, 12, 9:00 pm
I believe you are discussing a health and travel issue. Therefore, I am moving your thread to the Flyertalk Health and Fitness Forum. I hope that you will find some useful suggestions.
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

AjedrecístaBritánico
May 11, 12, 9:07 pm
Cheers, I could not find this part of the forum before.


obscure2k
May 11, 12, 9:08 pm
Cheers, I could not find this part of the forum before.

This is a great Forum. Glad I could be of help.

annerj
May 18, 12, 11:52 am
I always thought the hot to cold = getting sick was a myth. We workout inside and go into the freezing cold a bunch (granted for short durations). We workup a nice sweat when digging out snow machine and then cool way off.

I'm also more comfortable with cooler climate but if my math is right 18c = 64 F? I'm not sure what to tell you if 64 is too warm......that seems a bit extreme.

How is your fitness level? Weight? I know a few heavier folks who would always get hot (one lost a bunch of weight and is now always cold!)

AjedrecístaBritánico
May 19, 12, 1:15 am
I always thought the hot to cold = getting sick was a myth. We workout inside and go into the freezing cold a bunch (granted for short durations). We workup a nice sweat when digging out snow machine and then cool way off.

I'm also more comfortable with cooler climate but if my math is right 18c = 64 F? I'm not sure what to tell you if 64 is too warm......that seems a bit extreme.

How is your fitness level? Weight? I know a few heavier folks who would always get hot (one lost a bunch of weight and is now always cold!)

I am always told that the hot to cold change in temperature may cause stress in the body, but I was always told that air conditioning and catching cold is the myth. But various times I remember catching cold from hot countries where I walk from outside into an air conditioned building: Arizona, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Madrid, Mulhouse, Montréal, Toronto, Rome, Mexico, Barbados, etc. Arizona was the worst change in temperature since it must have been around 47 C and then I walked into the air conditioned building. 18 C is probably what feels like a slightly overcast day with a breeze, I am not familiar with Fahrenheit much. But if it is a myth why do I catch cold in hot places and then going into air conditioning?

But in Montréal, which was my last holiday, it was 11 C and raining outside, yet I had to keep my air conditioning unit to 15 C for the entire day. I would not recommend this to anyone except myself, but I felt overheated, maybe due to the humidity.

I have a very slim build (ectomorph), height 178 cm, weight around 77 kg. I used to weigh in the 50s kg last year, yet I was still just as overheated.

NPF
May 19, 12, 4:46 am
You won't catch a cold, but there are very similar allergy symptoms.

An abrupt drop in temperature will cause constriction of blood vessels in the nose; this is know to cause an allergic reaction in some people, and this manifests itself very much like a cold (laryngitis, pharyngitis, etc...).

AjedrecístaBritánico
May 19, 12, 2:06 pm
You won't catch a cold, but there are very similar allergy symptoms.

An abrupt drop in temperature will cause constriction of blood vessels in the nose; this is know to cause an allergic reaction in some people, and this manifests itself very much like a cold (laryngitis, pharyngitis, etc...).

I thought it was allergies when I had it, but I had beige-coloured/green, thick mucous when I coughed, chills, sore throat, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, runny nose, etc., so it feels like a cold in terms of symptoms too. When I get allergies, I never get sore throat and headache, and certainly not fatigue or chills.

NPF
May 19, 12, 5:56 pm
The colored mucus means that you got a sinusitis (It was one of etc in my post :)).

Sinusitis cause running in the back of the nose (post nasal drip) that infects the larynx and/or the pharynx. Your other symptons are compatible with a sinusitis, also.

With a mild allergy, you don't get sore throat or headaches, otherwise, if the allergy causes a sinusitis, you have the symptons you describe.

AjedrecístaBritánico
May 23, 12, 10:07 pm
Whatever happens to me with regards to respiratory issues, how should I handle the air conditioning then? Should I change the shirt and then turn on the air conditioning, or leave the air conditioning off until I stop sweating? I am going to Paris in September, and this will obviously affect me again. I have contemplated only going on holiday (or at least trying my best to schedule my holidays during the winter months: November-April for Northern Hemisphere, May-September for Southern Hemisphere) during winter times--does anyone else do this?

NPF
May 26, 12, 6:10 am
Ajedrecísta, allergies are a consequence of a disregulated immune system, there are not easy solutions to them - there is not a "cure" for them, they are a chronic condition. By your posts, you are only beginning to be aware of it.

Allergy problems are also very individuallized (yours and mine probably will have some common areas but also very different ones). I could tell you what made my life better, but I think it would be better for you to

i) find a good doctor - don't look for someone who is an "allergist" (could be a GP who does allergies, these will probably treat only the symptoms) but an "immunologist". These are the best as they will try to treat the causes (albeit with limited tools)

ii) you will need to develop a sense of what causes the allergy process to you, and to avoid or circumvent these triggers. It is much more effective to do it than to revert the manifestations of the allergic reactions.

As all chronic conditions, you need to learn how to deal with it; from time to time it will weight harder on you, but your life will be easier the better you understand your condition. I don't know your age; if you are young and this is your first encounter with a chronic illness, the process can be disturbing, but I'm sure you will learn how to deal with it.

Good luck and Welcome to the team :D

Bear96
Jun 14, 12, 9:48 am
OMG hot at 19'? I couldn't imagine - it won't be below 27'/28' where I live for the next several months, even at night!

AjedrecístaBritánico
Jun 16, 12, 2:44 am
That sounds horrible for me. I already have severe insomnia if the temperature at night is beyond 17-20 C. 27-28 C at night would make me not only very overheated, but also very tired, unless there is strong air conditioning. But I suppose it is also unsurprising that the winters in Montréal and Québec City are easy for me to handle.

h15t0r1an
Jun 17, 12, 2:11 pm
checking just in case but have other things been eliminated? I am thinking easily getting overheated could be linked not only to immune, but also to autoimmune type of thing e.g. thyroid? 18 degrees seems a low threshold

AjedrecístaBritánico
Jun 17, 12, 6:23 pm
delete

bologna1767
Sep 4, 12, 12:09 am
Is it possible that the big change in temperature is just really messing with your sinuses, and that it what give you the cold/sinusitis eventually? Rather than true allergies?

phol
Oct 14, 12, 8:38 pm
Try sitting in saunas regularly. I was told the mixture of 30+ heat and air conditioned buildings would make me ill when i moved to Asia, and i did get ill a couple of times. I then starting using saunas and that was the end of it.

Over the last couple of weeks i havent had time to go as much and hey presto, i have a cold. Purely anecdotal, but worth a try?



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