Can Wet Rooms Keep You Cool In Summer?

If you need to stay cool in summer, a refreshing shower with the temperature turned right down can be a great way to do this. Accessible wet rooms and shower seats can ensure that elderly people with limited mobility are easily able to do this.

The roasting hot weather has certainly made lots of headlines and for older people, the heat can be excessive and even dangerous on occasion. Indeed, for some, the consequences can be fatal.

For example, a team combining experts from the Met Office, Imperial College London and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has estimated that around 2,700 extra deaths occurred in England and Wales as a result of the May and June heatwaves.

 

How Hot Has It Been This Summer?

The records broken in these spells were startling:

• The hottest day ever recorded in the UK in May
• The hottest day ever recorded in June (37.7 C)
• The hottest June on record for England

Older people are the most vulnerable to heat, but the good news is that most were able to cope. This will be because a lot of older people will have tried-and-tested means of staying cool when it is hot, while still enjoying the sunny weather.

These range from using fans and staying in the shade to having lots of cold drinks. But sometimes a cool shower can be a great way of escaping the heat, as well as for freshening up in hot, sticky weather.

 

How Can The Right Bathroom Facilities Help You Stay Cool?

However, while many people will have done this many times down the years, even when it hasn’t got quite so hot, so frequently, the need to do so may be harder to fulfil as they become old and frail unless the right bathroom facilities are in place.

Having easily accessible wet rooms is a great solution, making it a simple affair to get into an environment where a cool shower can literally take the heat off.

At the same time, shower seats can prove especially invaluable for those unable to stand up for very long, as it means they can enjoy a longer cooling-off period, as well as the benefits of being able to sit down in comfort when they take a shower at any time of the year.

Those who will benefit from a shower seat include:

• People who struggle with their balance and may be at risk of a fall
• Those who cannot stand up for lengthy periods of time
• Arthritis sufferers

In hot weather, standing up for longer may be harder as the heat takes its toll, which provides another very good reason to have a shower seat in place to enjoy a nice, long, cooling shower.

The Met Office has declared that hotter summers have become the ‘new normal’, which could have serious health consequences for many older people. However, with the right provisions and adjustments, homes can be better equipped for such weather.

Ensuring that older people have easy access to their bathrooms is a matter of convenience and dignity at any time of year. During a heatwave, the opportunity to access a cool shower in comfort will be even more important.