Hyderabad: The body’s base metabolic rate changes when temperatures suddenly shift from hot to cold and hot again, as is being experienced these days.

The weather has a profound effect on our health and the fluctuating temperatures can lead to increased incidents of mortality in immuno-compromised patients.

The temperatures since April 11, have seen maximums of 37ºC and 26ºc. The minimum temperatures have also fluctuated from 24ºC to 19 and 16ºC.

The maximum temperatures predicted from April 15 for the next three days are 34, 35 and 36ºC and the minimum temperatures will be 21ºC and 22ºC.

The cloudy forecast with possibility of rain and thunderstorms is worrying, state experts as there will be rains in the night and sudden harsh sun in the afternoons, creating a lot of humidity, causing “insensible water loss” in the body.

Senior general physician Dr S. Rama Krishna said, “The sudden shift from cold to hot can lead to a major problem of water loss in the body. There are chances of early dehydration as the body tends to lose a lot of water. Also there is an increased risk of heat stroke and complications as the temperatures have suddenly jumped from low to high.”

Similarly with these sudden rains the temperatures dipped to 20ºC at night, which also affects the body. Dr Praveen K. Koppula, consultant of internal medicine, said, “The human body maintains a constant temperature. But when the temperatures outside drops, the body has to burn more fat to keep itself warm. Here the metabolic rate of the body changes as it has to use more energy to keep itself warm.

This shift can be tolerated by people who are healthy but those who are immuno-compromised face problems.”

The direct health effects are cold-related illnesses like fever, cough, cold, sneezing and soar throats. Apart from that some people have severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or respiratory problems like lower and upper respiratory tract infections.

With viruses getting the perfect weather conditions to become active, the most worrisome is the H1N1 whose lipid covering solidify with the fall in temperatures, allowing it to survive for hours.