Heat exhaustion symptoms: how long does it last and how to avoid heat exhaustion when travelling

• Heat exhaustion is when your body overheats making you feel dizzy and sick.
• It’s important than when you’re travelling to a hotter climate this summer you remember to stay cool and keep hydrated so you don’t develop heat exhaustion.
• If heat exhaustion turns into heatstroke this should be treated as a medical emergency.
• CE Safety expert Gary Ellis shares his top four tips for avoiding heat exhaustion this summer.

During warm weather it can become easy to overheat, but heat exhaustion can quickly turn into a medical emergency so it’s vital that if you are travelling or going on holiday to a warm climate this summer that you take steps to prevent it.

To help us out, CE Safety have shared their expert advice on how to enjoy the sun safely this summer. Here is everything you need to know about the symptoms of heat exhaustion and how to avoid it when travelling.

What is heat exhaustion?

CE Safety expert, Gary Ellis, explains: “Heat exhaustion is when your body temperature exceeds 38°C, and can make you feel dizzy and sick. If your body temperature goes higher than 40°C, the heat exhaustion can become a case of heatstroke, which can lead to seizures. This condition can leave you at risk of permanent disability or even put your life at risk.”

What are the symptoms of heat exhaustion?

The signs of heat exhaustion according to the NHS include:

• tiredness
• dizziness
• headache
• feeling sick or being sick
• excessive sweating and skin becoming pale and clammy or getting a heat rash, but a change in skin colour can be harder to see on brown and black skin
• cramps in the arms, legs and stomach
• fast breathing or heartbeat
• a high temperature
• being very thirsty
• weakness

Children, the elderly or adults with long-term health conditions such as diabetes are more likely to develop heat exhaustion, symptoms can present similarly whatever your age, but children may become irritable.

If someone is presenting with the symptoms of heat exhaustion they need to be cooled down and rehydrated immediately. First move them to a cool place, remove any unnecessary clothing that is keeping them warm, get them to drink cool water or a rehydration drink, cool their skin and stay with them until they feel better.

How can you prevent heat exhaustion on holiday?

When holidaying in a hot country, high temperatures can put you at risk of heat exhaustion, or even heatstroke, which can be life-threatening. Ellis has shared his four top tips on how to avoid getting heat exhaustion when travelling this summer.

Check local temperatures

Be sure to check the local temperature so you are aware of how hot it’s going to get, and try to avoid walking during the hottest part of the day. While noon is the sunniest and brightest time of the day it’s not usually the hottest, it will generally get even hotter at 2 or 3 pm, when the Earth has absorbed more heat. 

Stay hydrated

Drink plenty of water and make sure you have some with you. While caffeinated drinks and alcoholic beverages might ease your thirst, they can leave you dehydrated, so make you sure you drink plenty of other fluids, ideally water. 

Charge your phone

Make sure your phone is fully charged, so that you can stay in contact with the people you are travelling with. If you’re travelling alone this is still very important, as you need to be able to can contact emergency services in an emergency.

Share routines

If you are travelling with others, and you are doing separate activities for the day, keep each other informed about your plans, where you’ll be going and what routes you plan to take.

How long does heat exhaustion last?

If you still fell unwell 30 minutes after resting in a cool place, being cooled and drinking fluids your heat exhaustion may have developed into heatstroke and you need to seek medical attention.

What is heatstroke?

If heat exhaustion turns into heatstroke this should be treated as a medical emergency. Heatstroke is a life-threatening condition that occurs when your body’s temperature gets too high.

Symptoms of heatstroke according to the NHS include:

• still unwell after 30 minutes of resting in a cool place, being cooled and drinking fluids
• a very high temperature
• hot skin that's not sweating and might look red (this can be harder to see on brown and black skin)
• a fast heartbeat
• fast breathing or shortness of breath
• confusion and lack of coordination
• a seizure or fit
• loss of consciousness

If someone loses consciousness it’s important that you put them in the recovery position until they receive medical care.

You can learn more about the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke on NHS.UK.