Extreme heat can increase the danger of heat-related illnesses and threaten health in a more subtle way: by amplifying the side effects of many medications common.
Heat can also damage medications such as insulin, which requires refrigeration. Inhalers can explode. Epinephrine injectors, such as EpiPens, can malfunction. Medications sent by mail can deteriorate.
A look at common problems and solutions heat related and medicine:
What medications could cause problems with heat?
Blood pressure pills that reduce fluid in your blood can cause dehydration. Beta blockers for heart conditions can reduce blood flow to your skin and make you less aware of dangerous heat.
Some antidepressants can make it harder to stay calm. Aspirin and other over-the-counter pain relievers deplete fluid and sodium levels, making it harder to manage high temperatures.
In addition, the combination of heat and medication side effects can lead to dizziness and falls. Alcohol increases the danger, said pharmacist Bradley Phillips of the University of Florida College of Pharmacy.
He recommends staying hydrated and “not trusting your body’s ability to tell you when you’re thirsty.”
Some medications (antibiotics, antifungals, and acne drugs) can increase sensitivity to the sun, causing rashes and sunburnIf you are taking them, stay under an umbrella or use sun-protective clothing and sunscreen, said Dr. Mike Ren, a family physician at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
You might be taking antibiotics, not think too much of it, go to the beach and then come back with a huge sunburn,” Ren said.
How should medications be stored when traveling?
Medications should generally be kept in a cool, dry place unless they require refrigeration, which can be difficult when traveling.
Before a summer road trip, check labels for storage requirements for your medications. Carry medications in a cooler when traveling by car, even if they don’t require refrigeration. The trunk or glove compartment of your car may become too warm to store even at room temperature.
Travelling by plane? It is always best to carry your medications in your carry-on baggage in case your checked luggage is delayed or lost and it may be too cold in the cargo hold.
What about prescriptions sent by mail?
Mail order pharmacies are responsible for keeping your medications at safe temperatures during storage and transport. Best practice is to ship sensitive medications in special packaging with ice packs and temperature monitors.
But that doesn’t always happen. Or a delivery may come at a bad time, said Ren, who recently helped his mother on vacation by delivering a shipment of supplies to her Houston home as the region faced sweltering heat.
“If you know you’re going to be at work all day or if you’re on vacation and you’re getting medications delivered to your home, you definitely don’t want them sitting out in the scorching 100-degree sun,” Ren said. If you think the heat has damaged your mail-order medication, call the pharmacy to report the problem.
Is further research needed?
Yes. Researchers in the US and Australia say some of the common warnings about heat and medicines don’t have much scientific evidence to back them up. Ollie Jay of the University of Sydney found support for only four of the 11 categories of medicines that the World Health Organisation lists as causing concern in relation to intense heat.
He suggests changing behavior, not medications, such as not exposing oneself to heat. “You have to be a little more cautious,” he said.
Dr. Renee Salas, an emergency physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, said that as climate change accelerates, there is a need to know which medications are most risky in the heat.
We don’t have that answer yet, and it’s one we need to figure out quickly,” Salas said.
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