Puneites take late showers, skip meat to stay cool

Pune: Wadgaonsheri residents Atul and Aarti Sarthe have begun to keep half a bucket of cold water near their bed every night.“It is a good way to beat the heat, even if only for a little while,” Atul, a medical representative who moves around the city a lot, said. “Though we have a cooler, it is not effective right now as it is too hot and there’s very little breeze. Whenever we feel very hot while sleeping, we just dip our feet in the water for some time.” His wife Aarti said this was a tip from her grandmother in Jaipur, who also told them to have a cool shower every night before dinner.With temperatures in Pune hovering around 40C, several families, especially those who don’t have an air conditioner or cooler at home, have changed their daily routine and are using several tricks to keep the heat at bay. Prakash Singh, who lives in Koregaon Park, has given up meat, especially mutton, for now. “My mother told me to stop eating chicken and spicy, oily food. It was a difficult decision but my lighter stomach makes a difference. We also recently bought dark curtains to keep our room cool. We just eat simple ‘kadi-chawal’ for dinner and light food for both breakfast and lunch,” he said. Breakfast and dinner for Santosh Mishra, who hails from Bihar, is a cool glass of roasted gram flour, commonly called Sattu, sprinkled with chopped onions and roasted masalas. “It is a popular summer drink in my state and keeps one full without having to resort to heavy, oily food. My lunch can be anything, but for dinner, a glass of Sattu works wonders to keep my body cool and my mind active,” he said. General physician Diwakar Tejaswi said it was important to stay hydrated by drinking lots of water, preferably with electrolytes. “In this way, you won’t lose sodium and potassium due to sweating. One can replace their conventional meal with juicy fruits like papaya, musk melon, watermelon, cucumber, and finish it off with coconut water,” he said. Tejaswi also advised people to wear light-coloured, loose cotton clothes. “People not having ACs or coolers at home should ensure the lighting is dim and must use low power bulbs. They should also take frequent showers, including one before going to bed,” he added.