This summer has seen a relentless succession of heatwaves, with precious little relief in between. As temperatures remain stubbornly high, the temptation to crank up the air conditioning is undeniable.
Yet, while air conditioning offers an effective escape from the heat, it can also bring some unexpected side effects.
General practitioners have now revealed five surprising ways air conditioning can affect your body, sharing their top tips for reducing these annoying potential impacts.
1) Skin
Prolonged exposure to air-conditioned environments can have a noticeable drying effect on your skin.
“Air conditioning tends to remove humidity from the air which makes us feel cooler, but it can increase the water loss from your skin,” explains Dr Opel Baker, GP at Mayfield Clinic in Brighton & Hove.
“This can lead to dry skin, tightness, flaking and might even lead to increased sensitivity, eczema or chapped lips.
“Meanwhile, if you are already prone to getting dry or sensitive skin, you might find that air conditioning makes it even worse.”
2) Eyes
“Similarly, air con can dry your eyes out and might led to burning or stinging. Very occasionally, you might get blurred vision, but that’s very rare,” says Baker.
He adds that contact-lens wearers might experience more discomfort than others.
“If you blink a bit more than usual, that can help settle things down,” recommends Baker.
3) Nose and throat
“Your nose and throat are designed to be kept moist, so if they get dry they can become irritated,” says Baker. “This might lead to a sore throat, a blocked nose or a hoarse voice.”
Dr Lucy Hooper, London-based GP and co-founder of Coyne Medical, agrees and adds: “When your nose and throat dries out that means you’re less able to clear mucus which is an important part of our immune defence system.”
Some people might experience nosebleeds.
“Air conditioning can dry out your mucous membranes on the inside of your nose, which makes it more prone to cracking. Therefore, if you blow your nose too hard, or pick your nose, it can cause your nose to bleed,” says Baker.
4) Lungs
“If air-conditioning units are poorly maintained, that can increase the circulation of dust, pollen and mould which can irritate your lungs and may trigger lung conditions like asthma,” says Baker.
Hooper adds: “These environments can also increase the chance of getting respiratory tract infections, and if you’ve already got an underlying lung condition, getting an infection on top of that can be problematic.”
5) Aches
“If you have been in a hotel room with air conditioning for a prolonged period of time, you might have experienced headaches or body aches. This is because your skin has become dry and you’ve probably become dehydrated and the cold airflow might have caused a bit of muscle tension,” explains Baker.
“Dehydration is usually the main causes these types of symptoms, but air con can have secondary effects.”
What can I do to stop these irritating effects?
Here are some tips on how to combat these irritating effects:
Stay hydrated
“Make sure you drink lots of water and stay hydrated throughout the day,” advises Baker.
Moisturise your skin
“If you know that you’re going to be in an air-conditioned environment for a long period of time, make sure that you’re well-moisturised,” advises Baker. “That will help create a bit of a barrier to losing more moisture.”
Look for products that contain humectants, such as glycerin or hyaluronic acid.
“I would suggest using something which has a nice amount of what we call humectants in. They coat the skin really well and keep it very moist,” recommends Hooper.
Buy house plants
Treat yourself to a new house plant.
“Lots of house plants can help add moisture back into the atmosphere,” says Hooper.
Protect your lips
“Use a nourishing lip balm to protect your lips,” suggests Baker.
Buy some eye drops
“Contact-lens wearers might want to wear their lenses for less time than usual or use eye drops,” suggests Hooper.
Change the position of the air-con vent in your car
“If you’re in the car, try to position the air-con vents away from your face or from your eyes,” recommends Baker.
Keep your AC unit clean
“It might be out of your control in a hotel or an office, but if you have air-con unit at home, make sure that it’s well-serviced and looked after,” advises Baker. “Make sure that it has got new clean filters.”
Get a humidifier
“You could consider using a humidifier in the house which can help maintain some of the moisture in the air,” suggests Baker.
Adapt the times you are using air conditioning
“Think about how much you actually need to use the air con,” suggests Hooper. “It obviously has a lot of benefits for cooling us down, but you might not need it first thing in the morning when you are at home or in the office.
“You might want to wait to until the temperature goes up a bit in the afternoon before you turn it on.”
