Why older people should chill when it's hot out

Taking a break from extreme heat, by visiting a cooling center for example, could help our cells protect themselves from damage, according to preliminary findings from a new study. The research, which focused on older people, suggests temporarily cooling down on a hot day helps cells maintain autophagy, a process cells use to rid themselves of dangerous protein buildups caused by stressors like extreme heat.

"By lessening the time spent in a state of elevated internal body temperature, cooling centers may help to preserve autophagy in older adults, which may translate to greater cellular protection and improved health outcomes during an extreme heat event," said James J. McCormick, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at the Human and Environmental Physiology Research Unit of the University of Ottawa in Canada, and the study's first author.

McCormick will present the research at the END