Avoid intense workout sessions, cut down on your outdoor walks, abstain from staying under the sun for long and do not drink chilled water immediately after coming from outdoors...

Doctors have suggested several measures to avoid falling ill in the extreme humid conditions currently prevailing in and around Calcutta.

Doctors urged people to be careful even when they are indoors if the place is hot and humid.

Chandramouli Bhattacharya, an infectious disease specialist at Peerless Hospital, said people should drink enough fluids and electrolytes.

“This kind of weather causes a lot of sweat and loss of electrolytes and water. Only drinking water will not compensate for the loss. One has to take electrolytes, too,” he said.

Those who have restrictions in fluid intake — patients suffering from chronic kidney and liver diseases are under such restrictions — should consult doctors about how to deal with the heat and humidity.

Diabetics may have restrictions in having electrolytes because they contain glucose. “Consult your doctor,” Bhattacharya said.

Avoid going out unless it is necessary, he said. For those who have to step out, some precautions might help.

“People should amend their gym routine. Though gyms are air-conditioned spaces, it is still advisable to avoid intense workout sessions in this weather. Those who go out for morning and evening walks should reduce the duration and carry water bottles so they can drink water at intervals,” said Bhattacharya.

Unable to bear the heat and humidity, people often drink chilled water or step into an air-conditioned car or room immediately after spending time under the sun. Doctors advised against doing this.

“If one is under the sun for some time, he should not switch on the AC immediately after entering a room or step into a room where the AC has been running for long. Wait in a room for some time, let the body temperature come down and then enter an air-conditioned space,” said Amitabha Saha, head of critical care at Manipal Hospitals, Mukundapur.

“Drinking chilled water immediately after coming from outdoors or frequently changing rooms with sharp temperature differences can lead to infections,” he said.

Sore throat or irritation in the throat are common symptoms that result from frequent changes in temperature, he said.

Saha has also come across patients with “temperature diarrhoea”.

“They are running a mild temperature along with diarrhoea. Food, unless preserved properly, easily goes stale in this weather. Eating such food leads to gastrointestinal infections,” he said.