Follow these rules when using air conditioners to protect yourself from summer flu.

associate Dr. İsmail Önder Uysal gave information about “legionnaire’s disease”, also known as “air conditioner disease”, which occurs due to improper use of air conditioning, and its treatment.

get sick slowly

In the summer months, when the weather reaches high temperatures, colds can set in and manifest with symptoms such as flu, cold, and cold. However, the term “summer flu”, as it is known among the people, has a very different meaning than the flu caught in winter. The real name of summer flu is ‘veteran disease’ or ‘climate disease’. While it can show similar symptoms to the flu, the organisms that cause the disease are very different from the flu. First of all, this disease is not transmitted from person to person. Disease microbe; It is transmitted by multiplying in water installations, cooling towers, ventilation systems. It occurs when the water particles passing through these devices are inhaled or involuntarily escape into the airways. It causes the person to gradually get sick over days.

Legionnaires’ disease symptoms can be listed as follows;

• Headache
• Muscle strain
• tremor
• Fever of 40°C or higher

Other symptoms may appear on the second or third day, including:

• Cough which may produce mucus and sometimes blood
• Shortness of breath
• Chestpain
• Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea
• mental confusion

The medicines used for winter flu are not effective!

In the treatment of Legionnaires’ disease, medicines that were previously used for winter flu and colds or that were recommended by the environment should not be taken into account. You should definitely be examined by an ENT specialist or a specialist in breast diseases and the medicines recommended by the doctor should be used. Several precautions can be taken to avoid getting this disease. General maintenance and cleaning of air conditioners and ventilation systems and periodic filter changes; maintenance, watering and ventilation of swimming pools; Water changes, floor cleaning and thorough floor cleaning by timely and careful draining of the pool water are among these measures.

Correct use of air conditioning

In the summer, the use of air conditioners should generally be kept to a minimum. However, if the air conditioner needs to be used, it is very important to turn off the air conditioner regularly, wait a while, turn it back on, let it run lightly but continuously for a few hours, don’t lower the temperature setting too much, set it to the ideal coolness, carry out regular maintenance and replace the filters in time. It is healthier to ventilate the room where you will sleep through the window than to cool it with air conditioning.

Keep this in mind when using air conditioners to protect against summer flu;

1. During the day, a glass of water should be drunk about every hour.
2. The air conditioner should be kept at a temperature of about 22 – 23 degrees.
3. Cold air exhaust speed (blowing) should be at the lowest intensity.
4. The outlet direction of the cold air must be directed towards the ceiling of the room and remain constant.
5. The air conditioner should not be aimed directly at sleeping people.
6. It is not right to sleep in a room with both windows and air conditioners open.
7. If you wake up feeling cold, the air conditioner should not be turned off, the temperature setting should be increased by 3 – 4 degrees.