Free Summer Wellness Articles

Staying Hydrated

As our NZ summer approaches it’s time to think about staying hydrated.

Dehydration may be responsible for your back pain, or problems with short-term memory, difficulty with eye focus, kidney stones, bladder infections, dry skin, and constipation. It is also the no 1 trigger of daytime fatigue. Drinking enough water can also significantly reduce your chances of getting colon, breast, and kidney cancer and problems with obesity.

The human body is approximately 60% water, your muscles and brain around 75% water, your blood is about 82% water, and your bones are about 25% water. Water is required for everything from regulating blood pressure and body temperature to making sure the heart works well and the brain is capable of doing its daily tasks. Dehydration can lead to back pain, problems with math and short-term memory, difficulty focusing your eyes, kidney stones, bladder infections, dry skin, and constipation. It is also the number 1 trigger of daytime fatigue. Drinking enough water can also significantly reduce your chances of getting colon, breast, and kidney cancer.

Here are a few simple tips to support you staying hydrated over the coming months:

  • Eat your water. Eating water foods like watermelon, is a great way to stay hydrated.
  • Swap soda with sparkling water – it’s a healthy and fizzy, alternative.
  • Hydrate before exercising. Be sure to drink water 60-30 minutes before exercising to maximize your workout.
  • Drink water before meals. By drinking water before meals, not only will you stay hydrated but you're less likely to overeat.
  • Have enough on hand. When you're spending the day camping or biking, it's important to bring enough water to last the trip.
  • Spice it up with healthy flavouring. If you're having a hard time getting enough water, spice it up with some natural flavouring.
  • Keep a reusable bottle with you. Having a water bottle with you at all times is the easiest way to stay hydrated without even thinking about it.

How much should you drink? The Institute of Medicine advises that men consume roughly 3 litres (about 13 cups) of total beverages including 8 cups of water a day and women consume 2.2 litres (about 9 cups) of total beverages a day. ENJOY! 

Hay Fever

About 20% of the NZ population suffers from hay fever, making it one of the most common – and annoying – health issues in spring and summer. Hay fever is the common name for an allergy caused when your body makes antibodies in response to certain triggers, such as pollen. It can cause a recurrent runny, stuffy, itchy nose, and frequent sneezing. It can also affect your eyes, sinuses, throat and ears. It's most common in children and, particularly, teenagers, but you can develop hay fever at any age.

As pollen is one of the main causes of hay fever, avoiding exposure to it is the best way to reduce the allergic symptoms of hay fever. But this can be difficult for two reasons – there is an awful lot of pollen in the air during our spring and summer, and we kiwis like to be outside making the most of the sun when it’s out!

There is a good range of over-the-counter products which can treat the symptoms of hay fever, including tablets, nasal sprays, eye drops and creams. Have a chat with the Pharmacist to see what will work best for you. If you have asthma, it’s best to talk with your GP as hay fever can often make asthma symptoms worse so you might need to adjust your asthma medication too.

Here are a few tips to help you control your hay fever and enjoy being outside:

  • Keep windows shut at night and first thing in the morning.
  • Stay indoors when the pollen count is high (between 50 and 150); this is usually between 10am and 4pm, which is the same time frame for staying in the shade to avoid the most harmful UV rays! Plan to be outside when it’s cooler, such as after rain, and not so windy.
  • Wear sunglasses – wraparound if you have some cool ones – to help keep pollen out of your eyes.
  • Don't mow the grass or sit in fields or large areas of grass. If you must mow the lawn, wear a protective mask and glasses.
  • Wash your hands and face regularly, especially after coming in from outdoors.

Burns and Barbeques

Ah, the quintessential summer evening – good times enjoyed with good people, with good food cooking on the BBQ. We all love to enjoy summer by eating outdoors, cooking on an open fire or BBQ, but it’s important to remember that care needs to be taken when cooking with naked flames. A few simple things can help to avoid burns that happen in seconds but can have effects that last forever:

  • Don’t BBQ while drunk
  • Be aware of the wind direction
  • Don’t throw petrol or other flammable liquids on the fire to give it a ‘bit of a kick’
  • Have a fire extinguisher or bucket of water handy whenever you have a naked flame burning
  • Get schooled up on your first aid knowledge so you can deal with any burns

A burn injury is damage to the different layers of the skin, and is caused by the amount of heat generated from the heat source and the amount of time that the skin is exposed to this source. If there has been an accident at your BBQ and someone has been burnt, follow these steps to minimise their current and future pain:

  • If the patients clothing is on fire, STOP, DROP, WRAP and ROLL
  • Cool the burn area with cold water for AT LEAST 15–20minutes
  • If possible, remove any constrictive jewellery
  • Cover the burn with plastic cling film to help prevent infection
  • Do NOT use ointments or creams
  • Get medical assistance or CALL 111

We all love a good BBQ, and none of us like missing it by having to go to A&E instead, so be safe when using your BBQ and we’ll all have a great summer!

Christmas/Summer Parties and Alcohol

A hazard to our health in spring and summer can come in the form of celebrations - too much great food! Also at these celebrations there is often alcohol, which, as well as being a great social lubricant, can also harm our health in the short and long term. Let's all play it safe - don't drink and drive, and don't let your mates drink and drive either!

If you're hosting a party of some sort, and you're planning on supplying alcohol or have asked mates to bring it with them, there are a few things to think about to make sure that everyone stays safe and has a great time:

  • Provide food - and not just chip and dip! Make sure there is substantial food available for folks
  • Have plenty of yummy non-alcoholic drinks available
  • Make sure that your guests know what you expect from them before they come - tell them to leave 'fall-down Kate' and 'almost-got-arrested Sam' at home!
  • Be a good host and watch your drinking
  • Look after young people around alcohol if they're there, and, make sure the younger kids are supervised too
  • Think about other things to do at your celebration other than just eat and drink - how about a themed party or some twilight BYC (Back yard cricket)?
  • Have a taxi company's number on hand for those that need it
  • Look after your guests

Are you organising a get together at work that involves alcohol? Have a read of this site to get some advice on the do's and don't - http://www.easeuponthedrink.org.nz/for-employers

 

Fatigue Management

At the recent NZHPM Conference (NZ Health & Productivity Management) Dr Alex Bartle, establisher of the Sleep Well Clinic in NZ, gave a fascinating insight into the complexities of Fatigue Management and its impact on individuals and industry.

The consequences from workplace fatigue can be dire - even fatal. However they can also be managed, improved and through awareness - dramatically reduced.

Dr Alex Bartle suggests that "Fatigue is a complex state, characterised by a lack of alertness and reduced mental and physical performance often accompanied by drowsiness. Fatigue is more than sleepiness and its effects go beyond falling asleep."

The consequences of fatigue in Workplaces can be:

  • Increased absenteeism
  • Increased illness
  • Increased accidents (at work, also to and from work)
  • Increased risk taking

All of which, as an employer, can be costly and time consuming resulting in a reduction in performance for your organisation.

The benefits of reducing fatigue are:

  • A more capable workforce, with:
    • Higher levels of performance
    • Fewer accidents/incidents
    • Reduced absenteeism/increased availability
    • Improved health
    • Higher morale
  • Improved safety (and ACC claims)
  • Improved labour relations

There are three main participants resulting in fatigued employees:

  • The government – through regulation
  • The organisation and employer
  • The employee themselves

While we cannot influence the government directly, at an organisation and employee level, much CAN be done.

  • Organisation can change:
    • Company policies and procedures
    • Provide education for employees
  • Employee can change:
    • Personal lifestyle choices and responsibility
    • Medical fitness and healthy sleep
    • Knowledge of fatigue

Many thanks to Dr Alex Bartle http://www.sleepwellclinic.co.nz/ for such an informative presentation at the recent NZHPM Conference in Auckland and allowing us to publish content from his presentation

If you would like further information on Fatigue Management for your organisation, contact Sarah Jimmink, our Wellness Director on 343 2997 or sarah.jimmink@triex.co.nz

 

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