Tamer Mohamed Khalaf1,2, Mohamed Zaki Ramadan1, Riyad A Al-Ashaikh3. 1. Department of Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt. 3. Director, Strategic Partnership, Ministry of Labor, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Many research studies require recruiting heat-acclimatized workers to participate in heat-stress experiments and application fields. A reliable heat acclimatization program for workers in countries with hot environments has not been reported yet. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to estimate the effects of heat stress and the amount of acclimatization required in hot-climate countries. METHODS: Eighteen male workers from an industrial population participated in this experiment. Nine days of exposure to a hot environment (wet-bulb globe temperature, 30°C) was the independent variable. The participants' cardiac costs and increment aural-canal temperatures were the dependent variables. RESULTS: The study results revealed that 5 days of exposure to heat sessions were sufficient to heat acclimatize the workers based on their physiological responses (i.e., heart rate and aural-canal temperature). CONCLUSIONS: According to the available literature, workers in hot climate countries, similar to the study cohort, can heat acclimatize faster than those in other Western countries.
BACKGROUND: Many research studies require recruiting heat-acclimatized workers to participate in heat-stress experiments and application fields. A reliable heat acclimatization program for workers in countries with hot environments has not been reported yet. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to estimate the effects of heat stress and the amount of acclimatization required in hot-climate countries. METHODS: Eighteen male workers from an industrial population participated in this experiment. Nine days of exposure to a hot environment (wet-bulb globe temperature, 30°C) was the independent variable. The participants' cardiac costs and increment aural-canal temperatures were the dependent variables. RESULTS: The study results revealed that 5 days of exposure to heat sessions were sufficient to heat acclimatize the workers based on their physiological responses (i.e., heart rate and aural-canal temperature). CONCLUSIONS: According to the available literature, workers in hot climate countries, similar to the study cohort, can heat acclimatize faster than those in other Western countries.
Entities:
Keywords:
Heat stress; cardiac cost; heat strain; hot climate; thermal environments; wet-bulb globe temperature
Authors: Marco Morabito; Alessandro Messeri; Pascal Noti; Ana Casanueva; Alfonso Crisci; Sven Kotlarski; Simone Orlandini; Cornelia Schwierz; Christoph Spirig; Boris R M Kingma; Andreas D Flouris; Lars Nybo Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2019-08-13 Impact factor: 3.390