Green means safe to swim!
For the northern hemisphere, the beach season is about to start soon.
We already know rule no. 1 when being out for a long day at the beach:
Sun screen! – Our mums have told us too many times; and still we didn’t listen and got a bad sun burn each time.😉
Nevertheless, knowing about the different beach warning flags and what they mean when you go swimming is definitely worth a look at the following sheet:
…and always stay away from people who want to sell original Ray Ban sun glasses for a fiver to you. -Danger!
The flags should give us an orientation about if it’s safe to swim and spend our time at the beach or not. They prevent us from swimming at spots where there might be ‚rip currents‘ which are powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water that can appear close to beaches and may pull you into the sea, or they warn us about jellyfish or other animals that might be dangerous to us.
However, they do not warn about the dangers which are not obvious to our eyes.
As mentioned earlier ‚sunburn‘ is one of those quite serious things you have to protect yourself from.
Many people underestimate the intensitiy of our beautiful sun.
But be careful! – Genetic mutations, leading to skin cancer can be caused by UV rays. This is why it is recommended to use a SPF of at least 30 every two hours.
When it’s hot, many people forget to drink enough fluids or to cover their heads from direct sunlight. Dehydration and intense sunlight can cause ‚heat strokes‘. This happens when the body core temperature exceeds about 104 degrees Fahrenheit/ 40 degrees Celsius and is not able to cool down itself by sweating.
Typical symptoms are headaches, muscles cramps, weakness, nausea and vomiting, easily being avoided by drinking enough water and taking regular breaks from direct sunlight.
But most important of all is that we’re able to enjoy our time at the beautiful beaches in our world.
This requires us to keep our beaches clean from trash, or to relinquish using products which contain plastics, like peelings which are transported to the seas and cause a flood of ‚micro plastics‘ eaten by fish and other maritime animals.
Let’s not forget about these dangers which cannot be shown by a simple flag.
-BOONE MAGAZINE-