Take extra care of chronic conditions in the heat, warns doctor

P.E.I. is moving into the third day of a heat wave, and Islanders need to take extra care to guard their health, says Dr. Trevor Jain of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital emergency department.

The stress caused by excess heat can affect the body in a number of ways, said Jain.

"A lot of people think it only has to do with sunburn, dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke, but we do know when in heat waves your chronic illnesses are exacerbated," he said.

"Cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness, it can even affect those people with diabetes."

The rules for people with chronic conditions are much the same as for everyone, he said.

Stay hydrated, use sunscreen, take breaks in a cool space, and also use alcohol and cannabis in moderation.

Thunderstorms possible

This heat wave, the third of the year, started Sunday with the temperature hitting 29 C. It broke 30 C Monday, and the overnight temperature did not fall below 20 C.

The expected high on Tuesday is 29, and with the humidity, will feel like 37 C.

CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin said there is a risk of thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening.

"Whenever we have thunderstorms in the forecast with this humid of an air mass it does have a lot of energy to work with," said Simpkin.

"These thunderstorms that do form locally could put down heavy amounts of rain, anywhere from 15 to 25 millimetres of rain in an hour's time."

With that amount of rain coming down so quickly people need to be aware of the risk of flash flooding, she said.

Temperatures are expected to turn cooler Thursday, with rain in the forecast.