Cool it down... Naturally

When summer days get too hot for comfort, remember: If Nature gives us one extreme, it also provides for the other. Enjoy Nature's gifts of coolness instead of turning on the air conditioner and you'll save both energy and money.

How Hot Are You?
The first step to cooling down is simple: assess how hot you are. If you're only a little warm, try a glass of lemonade rather than automatically flipping on the air conditioning. It is healthier for you and nature to begin by cooling your body instead of the air.

Here are some tips:

• Let yourself sweat. Perspiration is a natural cooling system, producing just the right amount of moisture to lower your body temperature to a more comfortable level. Antiperspirants inhibit this cooling, so it's best to avoid them. To control body odor, use a deodorant that does not inhibit perspiration.
• Wear cotton or linen clothing, sleeveless tops, shorts, and loose clothing that allows cooling air to flow against your skin.
• Eat and drink cooling foods and beverages such as iced tea, raw fruits and vegetables, fresh juices, ice cream, and sorbet. Spicy foods common to hot-weather climates will also help cool your body.
• Use a paper or cloth fan.
• Sit in the shade, wear a wide-brimmed hat, or carry an umbrella or parasol.
• Stay out of the sun during the day and go outdoors during cool evenings.
• Spray yourself with water, which will act like perspiration to cool your body.
• Take a cold shower or bath, or rub ice over your body.

Drink Plenty of Water
Your body uses water to regulate your body temperature, you'll need to replace the water you lose through perspiration. For this you need pure water, not just any liquid. In very hot weather, eating salt-preferably natural sea salt--helps your body retain water and avoid dehydration.

Cool Your Home Naturally
There are many ways to cool your home while maintaining harmony with your land and climate. Here are some ideas:

• Take advantage of the cool northern exposure. A patio on the north side allows you to perform indoor activities in the cooler outdoors.
• Shade sunny southern-exposure windows and open northern-exposure windows to let in cooler breezes.
• Open windows in the evening to let in the cool breezes. If it is very hot, close the windows in the morning to retain the cool air during the day.
• Plant shade trees.
• Use flowing water, with a patio fountain or a garden waterfall.
• Minimize the Heat Created in Your Home

Three major sources of indoor heat gain are:

• Heat conducted through walls and ceilings from outside air.
• Waste heat created by lights and appliances.
• Solar heat from the sun shining through windows.

To minimize these heat sources:

• Weatherize your home.
• Use energy-efficient appliances and lights.
• Block sunlight with trees, shrubs, hanging plants, overhangs, and window coverings.

Use a fan.

• Fans use much less energy than air conditioners. Again, think about your cooling needs before you choose fans for your home.
• Small desktop fans have the added advantage of blowing mosquitoes away. Solar-powered fans run on the sun's abundant, nonpolluting, and free energy exactly when you need it--during the hottest part of the day.
• A whole-house fan in your attic or an upstairs window can pull cool air in and blow warm air out, saving up to two-thirds of your cooling costs. Even if you have air conditioning, it pays to use this fan instead when the outside temperature is below 780 Fahrenheit.

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