The Care CompassDementia and Hot Weather: Keeping Someone You Love Safe and Cool
Hot weather is riskier with dementia than most people realise. It isn't just about drinking enough — someone may not recognise they're too hot, may not be able to tell you, and some common medications make it harder for the body to regulate its own temperature. This is what to actually watch for, and what helps.
Why Hot Weather Is Riskier With Dementia
A few things stack up together:
- Dementia can affect someone's ability to notice or communicate feeling too hot, or that they need a drink
- The body's own cooling mechanisms (sweating, thirst) naturally weaken with age
- Some medications used in dementia and related conditions affect temperature regulation, sweating, or fluid levels — ask a GP or pharmacist if you're ever unsure about a specific medicine
- Reduced mobility can make it harder to act on the heat independently — moving to a cooler room, opening a window, or taking off a cardigan
This means early signs of heat-related illness are often subtle: quietness, increased confusion, reduced appetite, or unsteadiness — rather than someone saying "I feel too hot."
Heat Exhaustion vs Heatstroke
These aren't the same thing, and knowing the difference matters.
Heat Exhaustion
The body struggling to cool itself. Look for: tiredness, dizziness, headache, nausea, heavy sweating, muscle cramps, feeling or looking unusually unwell in the heat. Skin often feels cold and clammy, and sweating is usually still happening.
What to do: Move to a cool place, remove any unnecessary clothing, cool the skin (a damp flannel, fanning), and encourage sips of water. Most people improve within 30 minutes.
When heat exhaustion becomes heatstroke
If someone doesn't improve within 30 minutes of cooling down, treat it as heatstroke and call 999. Warning signs of heatstroke include: not sweating despite being very hot, confusion or acting strangely, a rapid or weak pulse, or loss of consciousness. Heatstroke is a medical emergency — it can cause organ damage if not treated quickly.
While waiting for help: keep cooling the skin, put them in the recovery position if they lose consciousness, and don't try to drive them to A&E yourself — an ambulance is the safer option, and the 999 call handler will guide you through what to do.
Practical Ways to Keep Someone Cool
In the home
Close curtains or blinds on sunny windows during the day. Open windows when it's cooler outside than in (often early morning or evening). Aim to keep the main room they use below around 26°C where possible. Turn off electrical equipment and lights that give off heat when not needed.
Clothing and outings
Loose, light clothing. Avoid the hottest part of the day (usually late morning to mid-afternoon) for walks or outings, and keep any time outdoors shaded where possible.
Drinks and food
Offer drinks often, even if not asked for — don't wait for thirst to be mentioned. Foods with high water content (fruit, salad, jelly, soup) can help too. Our full guide on dehydration in dementia covers this in more depth.
If they're in a care home
It's reasonable to ask the home how their heatwave plan covers hydration, room temperature, clothing, and extra checks during hot weather — most good homes will already have one and are happy to talk you through it.
None of this needs to feel like a huge project. Checking on someone a little more often during a hot spell, keeping drinks within easy reach, and knowing the difference between "feeling a bit off" and a genuine emergency is most of what actually matters.
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