The big risk:

Dehydration and heat stroke

There is an increased risk of dehydration during a heat wave.

Dehydration is the loss of water and minerals which affects the vital roles and functions of the brain, heart and kidneys.

When the core body temperature climbs to a dangerous level, it can lead to ‘heat stroke’ or ‘exhaustion’. Heat stroke and exhaustion can eventually lead to organ damage / failure and death without medical aid.

Exercise in hot weather

Vigorous exercise during the hottest times of the day is not sensible! Instead, run, jog or exercise closer to sunrise or sunset.

Take things slowly and adapt to the pace of life in the sun. If you feel breathless or your heart is pounding, stop what you are doing and try to cool your body down, for example, by taking a cool shower. Rest if you feel faint or dizzy.

If you over-exert during extremely hot weather, the body’s ‘cooling system’ (sweating) can fail. Muscle fatigue (cramps) dizziness and headaches are symptoms of heat stroke and can come on very rapidly.

Example temperature scale

20C (68F) Usually comfortable. Heart rate normal

25C (77F) Light sweating

30C (86F) Discomfort: Blood cools at skin surface. Concentration affected. Moderate sweating

40C (104F) Heat exhaustion: Heavy sweating. Rapid heart rate. Tiredness. Nausea

45C (113F) Heat stroke: Sweating stops. Hot, dry skin. Core temperature rises. Fainting. Danger of organ damage and death

Keep the fluid levels up – keep hydrated

During hot weather, the body will lose more fluid than normal. Keep your fluid levels up by drinking water (sipping). This is extremely important, however excessive drinking of water can cause problems.

Alcohol consumption during hot weather should be kept to a minimum as alcohol dehydrates the body.

Non-carbonated drinks may be preferred as an alternative to water but should be consumed in moderation.

Stay out of the sun

On extremely hot days, the best place to be is in the shade. If you must sunbathe, then ensure that it is for short periods, and that you use sunscreen with a protection factor of at least 15.

The sun is at its most dangerous between 11am and 3pm.

A sun-tan may look nice, but it is actually a sign of damage to the skin. Not only is sunburn painful, it can accelerate the ageing process, and increase the risk of skin cancer, including the potentially fatal form, melanoma.

If you start to feel queasy or ill then get out of direct sunlight as quickly as possible.

Protect the head!

Wear sunglasses with UV protection for your eyes. It is also a good idea to wear a wide-brimmed sunhat, preferably with vents.

Keep cool

Dark, heavy clothes absorb heat and body sweat needs to evaporate, so try to wear light, loose-fitting clothing, such as cotton.

Some thin materials do not provide a sufficient barrier to the sun’s dangerous UV rays.

Take a cool shower, bath or body wash. Sprinkle water over the skin or clothing, or keep a damp cloth on the back of your neck.

Ventilate your home

If the external temperature is close to or less than internal temperatures, all windows, and internal doors should be fully opened. This helps the natural ventilation to remove heat and increases internal air movement.

Windows and internal doors should be left open overnight in a secure manner.

Turn off nonessential lights and electrical equipment as they generate heat.

Use a fan or air conditioning if you have it.

Avoid heat traps – plan ahead

Try to avoid anywhere where shelter is minimal, and ventilation poor. Parked cars can be a particular hazard.

If you can, try to stay in an air-conditioned environment.

If you have no alternative, but to travel in a hot, stuffy environment – for instance on the Tube – then make sure you carry a bottle of water with you.

If you face a long journey, it may be wise to plan breaks to go above ground for some fresh air.

Take care of the vulnerable

Those most at risk from the sun include children under four, people over 65 whose bodies adapt more slowly to the change in temperature, overweight people whose bodies tend to retain heat more and people who are ill.

Babies are particularly vulnerable to heat as their sweat glands are not well-developed.

It is important not to wrap them up in blankets or heavy clothing when it is hot – but it is equally important to ensure that they are not exposed to direct sunlight.

Sensible eating

During hot weather, salads and fruits are good food sources with water content.

Try to avoid hot, heavy food.

Read more here:

Sun burn – guide

St John Ambulance – Effects of heat & cold

health experts warning

Deaths linked to hot weather

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Because employers and organisations can face fines of £5,000 per un-vetted staff allowed to work without the correct enhanced CRB in place, employees are being ‘laid off’ until the enhanced check is returned.  Consequently, with no income, personal bills can not be paid and debt is amassed.  Instances of homes repossessed due to outstanding CRBs are increasing.

Currently, there is no benefit support scheme to assist those employed but with no income waiting for CRB checks to be completed.

The Conservatives have pledged to look into the whole system if they win the next General Election, but that is little consolation to those whose family sanctuary has already been repossessed / about to be repossessed.

One care provider stated online that her employer had waited eight months for forms to be replied to: “people looking for work are on jobseekers and are being sent to three interviews per week even though they have a job, but are waiting for the CRB.  It’s ridiculous considering this is a much needed service but its being made so difficult for people to get into a job in care.”

Hundreds of innocent people ‘wrongly branded criminals’

Enhanced CRB forms can also sometimes disclose unproven allegations; “soft” information, rumour and hearsay, even where this information has never been heard in a court, and sometimes even when this information has been heard and the person concerned acquitted.

Broken system

In 2009, Richard Baum, the Liberal Democrat Councillor for the St Mary’s ward of Bury Council, and Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for Bury North, said on his website: “Over £600m has now been spent by private firms, the government, and individual job applicants, paying for CRB checks, which are necessary background checks performed prior to taking up work with vulnerable adults and all young people. Despite the need to ensure that people are safe, it is now clear that the system is broken.”

“I have long been campaigning for a fairer system for “enhanced” CRB checks, which can currently include hearsay evidence, unproven and contested accusations and rumour.”

Jenny Willott, the Lib Dem Cabinet Office Spokesperson, has said that “something is seriously wrong. These comments come as the Lib Dems reveal that the cost of a CRB check has risen by 45% in the last three years. At the same time, the number of delays of more than one month has greatly increased. Last year over 400,000 people were stopped from starting jobs or voluntary placements by delays in the system of over a month.”

culture of suspicion

“Of course it’s necessary to protect the vulnerable. But the government has gone too far in its attempts to create a risk-free society that can never realistically be achieved. We have now arrived at a situation so mired in bureaucracy that millions of people are paying lots of money for checks that many of them don’t need, and often have to repeat each time they change employer or role or even place of work.”

Mr Baum added “I ask for anyone who has been in touch previously about a CRB problem, or who would like to get in touch about one, to do so. If you want I can pass your details on to those interested in giving more publicity to trying to reform the system.”

We would also like to hear if your circumstances have been affected by overdue CRB checks. Please contact buxtonnews@googlemail.com

Sources:

Richard Baum

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The Danish Cancer Society looked at the rates of brain tumours among 20 to 79 year olds from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden.

They found that trends in cancer rates had not altered from the period before mobiles were introduced.

But they say longer follow-up studies are needed.

The research, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, says radio frequency electromagnetic fields emitted from mobile phones have been proposed as a risk factor for brain tumours, but a biological mechanism that could explain the potential effects has not been identified.

Cancer incidence

The study was based on 59,684 brain tumour cases diagnosed over 30 years from 1974 to 2003 among 16 million adults.

During this time, the incidence rate of cancers known as gliomas increased gradually by 0.5% per year among men and by 0.2% per year among women.

For cancers known as meningioma, the incidence rate increased by 0.8% among men and, after the early 1990’s, by 3.8% among women.

This more rapid change for women was driven, the researchers say, by the 60-79 year age group.

Isabelle Deltour, of the Danish Cancer Society in Copenhagen who led the study said the lack of a detectable increase in tumour rates up to 2003 may suggest that the time it takes for cancer to develop from mobile phone use is longer than 10 years of exposure or that the number of tumours it promotes is too small to be detected.

She said: “Our results extend those of previous studies of time trends up to 1998 by adding five years of follow-up.

“Because of the high prevalence of mobile phone exposure in this population and worldwide, longer follow-up of time trends in brain tumour incidence is warranted.”

Further research

Dr Alison Ross, Cancer Research UK’s senior science information officer, agreed that further research was needed: “Overall, the scientific evidence tells us that using mobile phones for less than 10 years does not increase the risk of cancer and this large study supports that conclusion.

“However, brain tumours often take a very long time to develop so we will need to look for any future changes in incidence rates to see if mobile phones could pose any longer-term risks.”

Mike Dolan, of the Mobile Operators Association which represents all five UK network operators said: “This finding is consistent with previous studies in this field and will form part of the overall body of scientific research.

“The UK mobile phone operators are supporting a large cohort study which is a recommendation of this paper.”

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But now a new technique has come on the market which promises not only to restore our sight but also to make it better than before and get us seeing in high definition.

Where the light adjustable lens (LAL) differs from others is that because of the flexibility of its material, unpolymerised silicon, it can be adjusted after it has been placed in the eye – allowing eye surgeons to optimise vision.

But at the moment the technique, which costs upwards of £3,000 an eye, is not available on the NHS.

Age deterioration

Larry Benjamin, from the Royal College of Ophthalmology, said: “It is an exciting development but is unlikely to be available on the NHS initially because of cost.”

TV star Fred Batt, a demonologist for the TV show Most Haunted Live, had noticed his eyes deteriorate over the years.

He needed glasses for reading but did not like wearing them and so opted to become one of the first in the UK to try the new technique.

This week, with one eye completed, Fred says the change in vision is extraordinary and he now has better than 20/20 vision – the standard measurement.

“Before this I had to use reading glasses,” said Fred, from Surrey.

“And when I was driving at night with the headlight glaring in my eyes it would cause difficulties with seeing properly.

“With my work on the TV show I sit and look at my laptop and so when the camera comes to me I need to get information quickly to see what the others have picked up ghost- and spirit-wise.

“I will get the other eye done in two weeks – that should mean super vision – so maybe I will pick up a few more ghosts.”

Mr Batt, who was awake during surgery, said the first thing he noticed was that everything seemed brighter.

“It is like having new eyes,” he said.

No glasses

Bobby Qureshi, at the London Eye Hospital, who is the only person in the UK carrying out the technique, said it allowed the eye to see perfectly again.

“We all have a lens in our eyes and this focuses the light onto the retina,” he said.

“When we are young this is transparent and flexible.

“Because it is flexible the muscles round the lens can change its focus to make the lens fat to look close up and thin to look far away.

“By the late 30s early 40s it tends to have become one shape so even though the muscles round it are acting on and pulling round the lens it cannot change its shape to change its focus and at that stage we need reading glasses. It is normal ageing and called presbyopia or ageing eyes.”

The lens can then be removed and replaced with a new lens made from flexible plastic, which unlike traditional lenses can be adjusted in the eye.

“The beauty about the lens is that from the start it was designed so the shape of the lens could be changed from the outside by using light from a particular wavelength,” he said.

“By changing the shape you can change the focus so you can change long-sightedness, short-sightedness and astigmatism (blurring).

“Unlike a conventional lens you can almost guarantee 20/20 vision because you can change and make sure you have corrected any problems.”

Eight patients have so far had the surgery – all have at least excellent 20/20 vision, although two still have some minor imperfections.

Alex Ionides, a consultant ophthalmologist from Moorfields Eye Hospital, said imperfections should be ruled out with the new technique.

“When we do cataract surgery we aim to give people good unaided distance vision and then they need readers for near,” he said.

“But we don’t always succeed in this aim, and some people require glasses for distance as well as for reading.

“This is owing to a bit of long- or short-sightedness or perhaps a bit of astigmatism left behind.”

By Jane Elliott
Health reporter, BBC News

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