Doctoral Student Rosie Perez Discusses Her Work in the Heat and Hydration Optimization Lab in Latest Short Talks

As summer approaches and the days get hotter, many people prefer to stay indoors to escape the heat. But what if you enjoy exercising or gardening outdoors? Or your job requires you to spend more time in the heat, like firefighters and construction workers?

This month on Short Talks from the Hill, Rosie Perez, a Ph.D. student in the Heat and Hydration Optimization Lab at the U of A, discusses her research on tactical athletes like firefighters and police and shares what she knows about beating the heat. Perez, herself an EMT, is also conducting a study of cardiac disease in firefighters.

Regarding summer heat, Perez advises: "Build up your tolerance before going out. So we have this thing called heat acclimatization. What this means is each exposure you get to the heat will actually help you feel better. And so it allows you to increase your plasma volume, which you need because that allows you to sweat more. And so we want people to slowly, if they can avoid being out there from like 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., because that's when it's the hottest, and try to move towards early in the morning or later in the night so they're a little bit cooler."

You can listen to Perez's podcast by clicking on the link above or by visiting the home of research and economic development news at the U of A.

And remember, you can now listen to Short Talks programming wherever you get your podcasts. Previous podcasts can be found at the link above or by visiting arkansasresearch.uark.edu.

Thank you for listening!