by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

Where I used to live, in Mississippi, it got hot in the summer. Really hot, and humid. Going outside was like entering a sauna. Many of my patients worked outside. Others worked in large metal buildings with no air-conditioning. Each year, I would have to treat several for hyperthermia. The surprising thing, though, was how few.

A big reason is they worked yearlong that way. The seasons change gradually, and their bodies adapted. Even then, though, when it got in the high nineties their bodies needed help. The smart ones had learned the tricks on how to survive the heat.

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