Does a mask increase the risk of heat stroke?
June 12, 11:34
Also, hot summer is coming.
The second summer to spend with the mask.
There are many voices on the internet who are worried about the effects on the body such as heat stroke.
After investigating, I found that various specialists have been investigating and researching the relationship between masks and heat stroke in the past year.
Does the mask increase the risk of heat stroke?
(Network News Department Naoko Okubo, Shinya Fujishima, Yu Suzuki)
It's hot and painful, but I can't get it
"It was hot! It was painful!" Children wearing masks and sweating home.
It is the scenery at the reporter's house recently.
"When it's hot, you can take it without overdoing it." Even if you say so, "But everyone wears it."
No matter how hot it is, many people find it difficult to remove the mask.
There are a lot of voices on the net worried about the effects on the body.
"Maybe it's because of the heat or because of the mask, my brain is vague. This summer is scary from now on."
"The mask is already too hot these days, but is it okay in summer?"
Causal relationship unknown ... First aid transport by wearing a mask
According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the number of people transported by emergency due to heat stroke begins to increase after May every year, and peaks from July to August.
There was some data that I was interested in.
The Yokohama City Fire Department is investigating whether or not people who have been transported by emergency due to heat stroke have been wearing masks since April 26th.
As of June 10, 39 people were transported by emergency.
Of these, 16 were wearing masks before the onset of symptoms.
Although the causal relationship is unknown, it accounted for 40% of the people who were transported.
I measured the temperature of the mask
Wearing a mask raises the temperature around your face.
On June 10th, when the maximum temperature in Tokyo exceeded 30 degrees Celsius, I put on a mask outdoors and measured the surface temperature.
The highest was the black cloth mask.
The brighter the yellow, the higher the temperature, and the temperature had risen to 34.6 ° C.
The lowest was a white cloth mask at 28.9 ° C.
(Surface temperature of mask by material)
・ Cloth (black) 34.6 ℃
・ Cloth (white) 28.9 ℃
・
Non
-woven fabric (black) 32.3 ℃
・
Non
-woven fabric (white) 30.7 ℃
・ Urethane (black) 33.2 ℃
・ Urethane (white) 29.4 ℃
I felt the heat and stuffiness of the black cloth mask the most.
There is no evidence of mask effects!
??
It seems that the risk of heat stroke may increase if the area around the face gets hot by wearing a mask, but experiments conducted by experts have shown surprising results.
Professor Akimasa Hirata of Nagoya Institute of Technology, who specializes in medical engineering, paid attention to "deep body temperature".
Although there are individual differences, it is said that the risk of heat stroke increases if the temperature rises even at 1 ° C.
When simulating how much the temperature rises when wearing a mask in a temperature of 35 ° C, the temperature of the skin around the mouth rises by nearly 2 ° C compared to when not wearing it.
This is consistent with the feeling that the reporter felt when measuring the surface temperature of the mask, "It's hot around the mouth ...".
On the other hand, "core body temperature" seems to have risen only by 0.06 ° C to 0.08 ° C.
Professor Hirata
"In daily life, core body temperature can rise by about 0.2 ° C. The risk is not zero, but wearing a mask does not mean that the risk of heat stroke increases sharply, so you do not have to worry too much. I think "
There are also experts who actually measured "core body temperature."
Shoko Kawanami, director of the Industrial Medicine Practical Training Center at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, who is familiar with the prevention of heat stroke, asked eight men to swallow a thin tube with a temperature sensor to measure the temperature of the esophagus near the heart.
After 30 minutes of light exercise, the core body temperature rose by 0.6 ° C, but it seems that there was no difference in the degree of rise between those with and without masks.
Director Kawanami
"If you
wear a
mask, the area around your mouth will get stuffy and you will feel stuffy, but as long as you live a daily life with a normal mask, you can say that it does not affect the rise in core body temperature, which increases the risk of heat stroke. However, it is necessary to be careful because we have not yet fully verified cases such as strenuous exercise or wearing a mask for a long time. "
At present, there are no data that masks increase the risk of heat stroke, according to several experts.
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is also calling attention to heat stroke when wearing a mask, but it seems that investigation is still needed because "scientific knowledge is not enough".
The risk is increasing due to the corona disaster
It is not clear whether masks increase the risk of heat stroke, but due to changes in life such as lack of exercise due to self-restraint and the troublesomeness of removing the mask, people tend to refrain from hydration. It has been pointed out that the risk is increasing.
When I have less chance to go out, my body is not accustomed to the heat.
People who work from home or have less opportunity to exercise can suffer from heat stroke even with a little exercise.
4 effective ways to prevent heat stroke
Measures against heat stroke that will become important in the future.
I asked an expert how to do it easily.
1. Thoroughly wash your wrists with cold running water
At the same time, you can cool your wrists with cold water, which has blood vessels close to your skin, which has the effect of effectively lowering your body temperature.
2. Wipe
your
face and head with a wet towel. Cooling
your face, head and neck tends to lower your body temperature.
It also takes heat when the water evaporates.
3. Take water regularly
Instead of "when your throat dries",
take water
before meals, after meals, before and after bathing, before going to bed, etc.
Sports drinks are recommended.
4. Use the air conditioner Turn on the air conditioner when the
room temperature exceeds 28 ℃.
Suitable for hot people.
Director Miyake
"The risk of heat stroke is increased more by the high temperature and the presence or absence of hydration than by wearing a mask. It is important to take basic measures thoroughly."
Especially when it comes to hydration, it's easy to put up with it because it's a hassle to put on and take off the mask.
You may decide your own rules and drink water diligently.
By the way, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare recommends 1.2 liters per day and one glass every hour.
Effects on breathing Children need to be careful
Finally, research is progressing on the effects on breathing that are of concern other than heat stroke.
You may feel stuffy when wearing a mask, but it seems that infants need to be careful.
Mr. Kida, who specializes in respiratory organs, is examining the treatises of overseas researchers.
According to the report, healthy adults and the elderly wearing masks did not affect dyspnea, muscle fatigue, or cerebral blood flow.
However, infants have a higher risk of respiratory failure than adults because the muscles for breathing = respiratory muscles are not sufficiently developed.
In addition, children may not be able to breathe enough air in the wrong way, such as by tightening the mask so that it sticks to their mouth or nostrils.
Mr. Kida
"Since children
vary
greatly from person to person, it would be better to remove the mask when exercising."