Mumbai, Apr 20 : Alarming rise in cases of fever, dehydration and infection in the city; doctors say stepping in and out of A/C rooms and drinking cold beverages to blame.
Coughing, burning up, or stricken by dehydration? Don't blame it on the weather, but on your inability to resist the urge to lounge about in air-conditioned rooms, or go 'bottoms-up' on a cold drink in a desperate attempt to beat the heat. There has been an alarming rise in cases of fever, dehydration and infection in the city lately.
Under the weather: According to doctors, consumption of ice increases
the chances of infections in summer. representation pic
Experts believe that it's not just the heat, but also the constant fluctuation in body temperatures, that is causing these diseases. When you walk into air-conditioned premises, or drink a cold beverage right after walking in from the sun, the immunity levels of your body dips dangerously low, making you vulnerable to many diseases and infections.
"The body gets accustomed to a particular temperature. In Mumbai, people step out of their air-conditioned houses. After a while they step into their air-conditioned cars. Then they enter their air-conditioned offices. Their body temperature fluctuates each time they move in and out of air-conditioned premises, and this increases susceptibility to disease," explained Dr Jalil Parkar, physician, Lilavati Hospital.
Apart from the air condition-dependent lifestyle of Mumbaikars, doctors suspect that the use of ice in beverages may also be largely to blame for summer illnesses. "In summer, the consumption of ice increases. This is a primary source of infection," said Parkar. Kohinoor Hospital's out patient department (OPD) is buzzing with patients complaining of soar throats, body ache, cough, colds and headache.
Dr Amol Manerkar, consultant physician at the hospital, said, "Every second day, we have patients coming to the OPD for medical attention because of sun strokes, exhaustion and fatigue. These patients mostly expose their bodies to two extreme sets of temperatures, and then face the debilitating after-effects."
Cases of chicken pox and measles are also reported to be on the rise. Dr Pratit Samdani, consultant physician at Jaslok and Breach Candy hospitals, said, "Recently we treated two young patients for chicken pox, and three suffering from measles. People assume that chicken pox does not need treatment. However, I would advise them to consult doctors and take medication in order to avoid complications."
Till about two weeks ago, Kohinoor Hospital was treating at least two cases of chicken pox every day, "Most of them were teenagers. But now the cases have come down," said Manerkar. A few precautions might help keep diseases at bay, though there seems to be no respite from the heat. According to the Indian Metrological Department, the temperature will remain constant. "The skies are clear, and there is no possibility of rainfall in the next few days," said a weather official