Hot weather increases the risk of many digestive diseases

Hot weather causes the body to lose a lot of water, an unbalanced diet, and eating contaminated, spoiled food leads to many digestive diseases.

Hot weather is a favorable condition for viruses and bacteria to grow and develop rapidly. At this time, the rate of people suffering from digestive diseases such as digestive disorders, acute diarrhea, dysentery, food poisoning, etc. increases. Dr. Vu Truong Khanh, Head of the Department of Gastroenterology, Tam Anh General Hospital, Hanoi, said that there are many reasons why digestive diseases tend to increase in the hot season.

Food is susceptible to contamination and spoilage.

Diarrhea, digestive disorders, food poisoning are often caused by bacteria such as salmonella, botulinum, e.coli, campylobacter, listeria... The growth rate of these bacteria depends on many factors such as oxygen, temperature, humidity, acidity... They thrive in environments with temperatures from 5-60 degrees Celsius, and can double in number after only 20 minutes at temperatures of about 32-43 degrees Celsius. From one bacteria, after 8 hours it can multiply into nearly 17 million.

Hot weather makes food spoil easily and spoil if not preserved properly, especially foods of animal origin, rich in protein, containing a lot of oil such as meat, fish, seafood, milk and dairy products.... When you eat them, bacteria will produce toxins that cause symptoms of poisoning and digestive disorders.

According to Dr. Khanh, to avoid digestive diseases, you should choose fresh food with clear origin and quality control. Food safety principles must be followed such as eating cooked food, drinking boiled water, washing food before eating and processing. Food processing and preservation must ensure hygiene. It is best to cook a sufficient amount of food and use it within 2 hours. If there is any leftover, reheat it immediately after eating, then refrigerate it at a temperature below 5 degrees Celsius.

Food that has been left at room temperature for more than 4 hours should be discarded as it may have been attacked by bacteria. After 3-4 days, even if stored at a temperature below 5 degrees Celsius, the food can still spoil and cause food poisoning. Therefore, you should not reuse leftover food after 4 days of storage in the refrigerator.

Fresh foods should not be left at room temperature when purchased, but should be washed immediately and stored in the refrigerator and used within 3-5 days. Avoid mixing raw and cooked foods, green vegetables, and fruits. Some foods stored in sealed containers or bottles such as meat, canned fish, pickled fish, salted meat, and pickled vegetables are not salty enough, and have a high risk of poisoning due to the anaerobic bacteria clostridium botulinum, so care should be taken when using them. Food after processing should be carefully covered to prevent rats, flies, cockroaches, etc. from entering.

Nutritional imbalance

The body often sweats a lot to cool down when it is hot, causing loss of water and electrolytes, leading to a decrease in appetite. In addition, the hypothalamus in the brain has the function of regulating body temperature and controlling appetite. Because the digestive process also generates a lot of heat, to reduce the workload, the hypothalamus will suppress appetite. Therefore, in the summer, people are often more thirsty than hungry.

Body fatigue, loss of appetite leads to irregular eating. Many people tend to skip meals, eat at irregular times, have quick meals that do not ensure nutrition or choose processed foods that contain a lot of salt and fat but eat few green vegetables and fruits. Nutritional imbalance causes health to decline. Therefore, when exposed to contaminated food, you are susceptible to disease. Dehydration, a diet low in fiber increases the risk of constipation and anorectal diseases such as hemorrhoids, colitis...

The hot weather makes many people lose their appetite, choosing processed foods that cause nutritional imbalance. Photo: Freepik — The hot weather makes many people lose their appetite, choosing processed foods that cause nutritional imbalance. Photo: *Freepik*

Improper cooling habits

Dr. Khanh said that many Vietnamese people have the habit of "cooling off" with beer, energy drinks, and carbonated soft drinks during the summer. Drinking beer and wine in hot weather reduces or eliminates the feeling of heat, but body temperature does not decrease. Beer and wine increase urination, easily causing dehydration in hot weather. The alcohol in these drinks also kills a large amount of beneficial bacteria, causing an imbalance in the intestinal microflora. If you drink a lot regularly, it increases the risk of stomach and intestinal diseases.

Energy drinks have the ability to increase contractions of the digestive tract, increase intestinal motility, causing loose stools. Sweeteners or sugar alcohols in energy drinks such as maltitol, xylitol cause indigestion, bloating because they cannot be broken down and metabolized by intestinal bacteria. Carbonated soft drinks contain a lot of carbon dioxide gas, leading to bloating, flatulence, and increased symptoms of gastric reflux.

Hot weather makes many people tend to eat cold food. While this habit can cause indigestion, especially after a fatty meal.

The habit of cooling off with ice cold water can cause indigestion. Photo: Freepik

Dr. Khanh added that after being infected with the virus or bacteria for about 2 days, the patient may vomit or feel nauseous, have a fever, or have diarrhea many times a day, lasting about 3-10 days. If not detected and treated promptly, the patient may experience many health consequences, even life-threatening in cases of dangerous poisoning. Therefore, when there are signs of digestive diseases, the patient needs to go to the doctor for diagnosis and treatment. To avoid digestive diseases during the summer, everyone should have a reasonable diet and lifestyle such as eating lots of green vegetables, fresh fruits, drinking enough water, limiting spicy foods and stimulants (alcohol, coffee, cigarettes, etc.), getting enough sleep, and exercising regularly every day.

Trinh Mai

Source link