1
Denver skyline at sunset, sky is orange

How to protect your health in higher temperatures and extreme heat

We are committed to ensuring Coloradans have the information and resources they need to be safe and healthy during higher temperatures and extreme heat.

Hot temperatures and your health

Heat-related illnesses, like heat exhaustion and heat stroke, are serious. In 2024, Colorado saw a record high number of heat-related emergency department visits. Heat-related illnesses can damage the brain and other vital organs. These conditions occur when the body’s temperature rises faster than it can cool itself.

How can you protect yourself

  1. If possible, stay in an air-conditioned area. If you do not have access to air conditioning, go to a shopping mall, library, or other place that does. Even a few hours in an air-conditioned environment can keep the body cool. 
  2. Drink water often, don’t wait until you’re thirsty. Avoid sugary drinks and alcohol, as they cause a loss of body fluid. Provide pets with plenty of fresh water, too.
  3. Protect yourself from the sun. Wear sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher, a hat, and lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothes.
  4. Limit outdoor activity to the coolest part of the day. Rest often and try to find areas with shade. When indoors, use fans, but only if indoor temperatures are less than 90°F. In temperatures above 90°F, a fan can increase body temperature. 
  5. If your job involves physical work outdoors or in a hot indoor environment, drink water regularly, rest in the shade, and communicate any signs of heat illness to supervisors. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has heat-safety resources for employers, including mobile apps that can alert workers when hotter conditions exist.

Know your heat risk

  • Use the HeatRisk Dashboard from the National Weather Service, plan activities, and stay safe. 
  • Talk with your health care provider to find out if you are at increased risk for heat-related illness. Certain medical conditions, medications, and other factors may make you more susceptible to heat-related illness than others.

Keep loved ones safe during higher temperatures and extreme heat

  • Check on your neighbors to ensure people in more isolated settings (e.g., rural settings, older individuals living alone, and those with disabilities) stay safe during higher temperature events. Watch them closely for signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. 
  • Visit those in your care and ask yourself these questions: 
    • Are they drinking enough water? 
    • Do they have access to air conditioning? 
    • Do they know how to keep cool? 
    • Do they show signs of heat stress? 
  • Provide pets with access to plenty of fresh water, and keep them inside or in the coolest place possible. Leaving animals outside during hot summer days is dangerous.
  • Parked cars get hot fast and can be deadly due to poor ventilation. A cracked window isn’t enough to prevent heatstroke. Build a new habit and always check your back seat before leaving your car.

Know the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke

Heat exhaustion symptoms can include:

  • Heavy sweating.
  • Weakness or tiredness.
  • Cool, pale, clammy skin.
  • Fast, weak pulse.
  • Muscle cramps.
  • Dizziness.
  • Nausea or vomiting.
  • Headache. 
  • Fainting.

If you experience any of these symptoms, move to a cooler environment, loosen clothing, apply cool, wet clothes, sit in a cool bath, and sip water. Seek immediate medical attention if you or someone else vomits, becomes confused, symptoms worsen or last longer than 1 hour. 

Visit the National Weather Service website for more information on heat-related illnesses.

Heat stroke is a serious and life-threatening condition

Call 911 and seek emergency treatment if you or someone else experiences signs of heat stroke, including:

  • Throbbing headache. 
  • Confusion.
  • Nausea.
  • Dizziness.
  • Body temperature above 103°F.
  • Hot, red, dry, or damp skin.
  • Rapid and strong pulse. 
  • Fainting.
  • Loss of consciousness.

For more information on how to stay safe in the heat, visit the CDC’s website.

Frequently asked questions

According to the National Weather Service, a heat wave can be any period of one or more days when the weather is hotter than usual. In Colorado, that usually means:

  • Three consecutive days with the high temperature at or above 100°F (NWS Boulder).
  • Three consecutive days with highs at or above 95°F where the record high is broken on one or more of those days (NWS Boulder).

Heat-related illnesses, such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke, occur when the body cannot properly cool itself. Normally, the body cools itself by sweating, but this might not be enough during higher temperatures. In these cases, a person’s body temperature rises faster than it can cool down, which can damage the brain and other vital organs. Heat stroke is a life-threatening condition and requires immediate emergency care.

Every person responds to heat differently. Generally, days of higher temperatures and periods of heat waves puts everyone at risk for adverse health impacts if they don’t take steps to get relief from the heat. Days of higher temperatures, combined with nights that don’t cool down, are particularly dangerous to the human body. Some people may be more susceptible to heat than others. For example, people with certain medical conditions, older adults, children, and people who are pregnant are more at risk of adverse impacts from heat than others, meaning they may be more likely to experience adverse health impacts under the same conditions. Never leave infants, small children, or pets in your car.

Stay cool by seeking shelter in indoor, air-conditioned public spaces like community centers, shopping malls, libraries, or designated cooling centers in your community. Even just a few hours of relief from the heat can cool your body enough to avoid heat-related illness. If possible, plan your outdoor activities during cooler parts of the day. Drink plenty of water. When outdoors, seek shade, wear lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing, and use sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. Some counties set up cooling centers to help their communities beat the heat. To find a cooling center in your community, contact your local public health agency or call 211.

Wear lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing. Breathable fabrics made of cotton, linen, rayon, chambray, or synthetic blends can help you stay cool in the summer. Look for items with a UV protection factor of over 30. A wide-brimmed hat will provide shade and keep your head cool.

When outdoors, apply sunscreen with at least 30 SPF 20 minutes before going outside and reapply according to the package directions. Sunburn affects your body’s ability to cool itself and causes a loss of body fluids, which can worsen the impacts of hot temperatures.

Yes. Age is a risk factor because older adults do not adjust as well to changes in temperature compared to when they were younger. They are also more likely to have a chronic medical condition that alters the body's normal response to heat. Prescription medicine use is also common in older adults. Some prescription medicines can affect how the body cools itself down, either by making it harder to manage your temperature or by preventing you from sweating properly or masking the signs and symptoms of heat-related illness until it is severe.

Higher temperatures can affect anyone, so it is important for everyone to know the actions to take that help the body cool itself to prevent heat-related illness.

Some groups of people face a higher risk and need to be extra careful: 

  • People with health conditions, including:
    • Heart or lung problems, such as a history of heart attacks, stroke, or heart failure, asthma, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
    • Other chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes or cancer.
    • Obesity.
    • Mental health conditions.
  • Infants and children.
  • Pregnant people.
  • People with limited or no access to safe, air-conditioned, or cool shelter:
    • Those experiencing homelessness.
    • Individuals in unsafe home environments, including young people or those experiencing domestic violence. 
  • Individuals who are incarcerated. 
  • People who work or spend time outdoors:
    • Outdoor workers, including first responders or military personnel in training programs.
    • Athletes and people who recreate outdoors (for example, walking, golfing, hiking, cycling). 
    • Indoor workers in buildings without air conditioning, with poor temperature controls, working with equipment that produces heat or steam, or with inadequate ventilation.
  • People who use alcohol and other substances. 

If you have to work while it's hot outside, take the appropriate steps to prevent heat illness. Drink plenty of water, and don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink — drink one cup of water every 15 minutes (about one quart per hour), even if you’re not thirsty. Avoid alcohol or liquids containing large amounts of sugar, and wear and reapply sunscreen as indicated on the package. If possible, complete outdoor tasks earlier or later in the day to avoid midday heat. When working outside, wear a brimmed hat and loose, lightweight, light-colored clothing, and consider using a neck fan if you have one to help keep your body cool. Spend time in the shade, in air-conditioned buildings, or in air-conditioned cars during breaks and after work, if possible. Encourage coworkers to take breaks to cool off and drink water. Know the signs of heat illness, and be aware of symptoms in yourself and your coworkers. If you feel faint or weak, stop all activity and get to a cool place. Communicate any signs of health illness to supervisors. 

It’s not just people who work outside who need to be cautious in higher temperatures. Heat-related illness can happen to people who work inside, especially if:

  • Your workplace lacks well-functioning air conditioning or has poor ventilation.
  • You work with hot equipment or machinery.
  • Your work is physically demanding.

Know the signs of heat illness, no matter what your work is, to protect yourself and your coworkers. For more information on worker health and safety, refer to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s website and the Colorado Department of Labor’s worker guidance.

Yes, heat can interact with some medications and affect the body’s ability to stay cool, maintain hydration, or show signs and symptoms of heat-related illness until it is very severe. Examples of these medications include antidepressants, mood stabilizers, diuretics, sleep aids, Parkinson's drugs, and medications for high blood pressure. Certain medications can also affect the skin’s sensitivity to the sun. Talk with your health care provider to determine if your medications will interact with the heat, and make sure to read the labels on your medications, as many labels are often in Celsius. Refer to the Celsius to Fahrenheit converter, if necessary. 

Ensure safe and proper storage of medications as higher temperatures can degrade and damage some medications (e.g., Epipens, inhalers, insulin).

Extreme weather events can affect mental health. Higher temperatures can be an additional stressor for someone with behavioral health conditions, and people with these conditions may have a harder time taking steps to protect themselves from higher temperatures. Certain medications that some people take to manage mental health conditions may also interact with heat. Talk with your health care provider about how summer heat may impact your mental health. Extreme weather events can also exacerbate and contribute to increased domestic violence incidents. Visit the Colorado Human Services’ Domestic Violence Program webpage if you or someone you know is in need of support. To learn more, visit the CDC’s Climate and Health: Mental Health and Stress-Related Disorders webpage.

Alcohol and other substance use can contribute to an increased risk of heat-related illness. Alcohol and other substances can impact your body’s ability to regulate and respond to heat, making you more likely to experience an adverse health impact from the heat or from substance use. Some drugs can predispose an individual to heat-related illness. Stimulants can raise body temperature and cause dehydration, while opioids and benzodiazepines can mask heat stroke symptoms. People using substances may also struggle with basic needs, putting them at a higher risk of adverse health outcomes due to increased heat exposure. 

CDPHE uses the National Weather Service’s HeatRisk tool to define risk thresholds for higher temperatures. The HeatRisk tool is a color-coded index that considers how unusual the heat is for the time of year, the duration of the heat, including both daytime and nighttime temperatures, and whether those temperatures pose an elevated risk of heat-related health impacts based on health data from the CDC.  

When the HeatRisk tool shows a Moderate risk level of 2 or higher, we can anticipate effects on most individuals sensitive to heat, especially those without access to effective cooling or adequate hydration.

Contact your local utility company to see if they have any incentives for air conditioning or swamp coolers. You can also visit the Love Electric website to select your utility and discover available measures. Additionally, the Colorado Energy Office will have programs available for non-emergency situations in 2026, offering Home Energy Rebates.

Protecting populations during higher temperatures 

Planning and preparing

The following are tools and resources for preparing for heat events and learning more about the risk of higher temperatures.