But It's A Dry Heat.....

[minsue]

And I know all about the hot tea 'myth'.......I still drink hot tea. I find it refreshing, even in these temperatures.

You're such a freak, baby.

 

[matriarch]

You're such a freak, baby.

Why, thank you.
I take that as a compliment.

 

[cheerful_deviant]

But it's a dry heat.

...yeah, so is a blowtorch. Go stick your face in that.

 

[AchtungNight]

If you can't take the heat, stay out of the inferno.

 

[Liar]

The Chinese beleive that one should drink hot tea, to releive heat- it makes you sweat, you see, and the sweat cools you down... There qare a number of myths that irritate me- can't think of anything just now, but I remember saying "Oh, that's just a myth"

I was given hot coffee in Morocco for the same reason. Plus they claimed thar if I was to drink iced water, that I asked for, my "internal thermostat could collapse".

 

[minsue]

I was given hot coffee in Morocco for the same reason. Plus they claimed thar if I was to drink iced water, that I asked for, my "internal thermostat could collapse".

Now that sounds painful

 

[she_is_my_addiction]

....and other popular myths (particularly about the desert). I hear that BS all of the time. Having lived in AZ for 7 years and now living in Texas, I can tell you, the dry heat can be just as bad or worse at times than humid heat. At least in the humidity, I can perspire (a complication of hypothyroidism, that I can't sweat much in the desert- I just overheat).

My gf still believes it, and she is a smart gal. It's just that she and others can't possibly know what it is like to live in the desert until they have done so. Since she is very fair-skinned, I wouldn't recommend that for her (plus I don't want to go back there myself). Nothing against AZ, but 7 years are enough in the Phoenix. Like my Dad says, "You can put all of the concrete in the world in desert, but it is still a desert" (in fact, it's even hotter, since concrete absorbs heat).

Another myth is that you can relieve your thirst by drinking cactus juice. Not true. It's not what you need if overwhelmed by heat and thirst.

Any other popular myths that annoy you?

I love dry heat. I've got family in AZ...thank God. For me it's a relief to get away from the humidity for a while. I'm sure it'd be a helluva lot different if I lived there.

 

[matriarch]

...yeah, so is a blowtorch. Go stick your face in that.

That's EXACTLY what it feels like.
You've been there???

 

[Weird Harold]

Actually you've just promulgated a myth- I am hypothyroid like Sev, and it's true- you just don't sweat easily. I have finally found a good endocrinologist and as my levels are becomeing more like normal, I do sweat easier- and I feel the heat much more now than I used to.

Regardless of medical conditions, you don't notice sweating when it evaporates immediately. Hypothyroidism may cause you to sweat less than you should, but howevr much you sweat or don't sweat, the humidity has the same relative effect.

It has reached 117 or 120 at times in the Phoenix area, yes. Is that true about soaking your head, Stella?

Yes, cooling your head and neck is more effective than trying to keep your whole body cool -- just as you're warned to wear a hat when it's cold because the majority of the body's heat escapes through the head and scalp, you can remove more heat through the scalp by cooling it than you can through less densely veined skin elswhere.

Also, cooling your head -- i.e. keeping your brain from overheating -- is more important than keeping less important body parts cool; you can recover from muscle cramps but recovering from brain damage is much more difficult.

I was given hot coffee in Morocco for the same reason. Plus they claimed thar if I was to drink iced water, that I asked for, my "internal thermostat could collapse".

I don't know about your "internal thermostat collapsing" but drinking very cold fluids isn't good for you, nor is drinking very hot liquids. The best thing to drink is "tap-cool" water or "room temperature" sports drinks to keep yourself hydrated and your electrolytes in balance. Drinking something very cold can cause stomach cramps and/or "brain freeze" -- hardly life-threatening but uncomfortable.

Very high temperatures -- 105F and up -- are dangerous no matter what the humidity is, but "113F and 74% humidity" will kill you a lot faster than the same temperature at 7% humidity; even if the latter does feel like kissing a blowtorch.