HEAT ACCLIMATISATION AND ACTIVE BODY COOLING STRATEGIES TO MITIGATE HEAT STRESS for operations involving bullet proof vests

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HEAT ACCLIMATISATION AND ACTIVE BODY COOLING STRATEGIES TO MITIGATE HEAT STRESS FOR OPERATIONS INVOLVING BULLET PROOF VESTS



L. Law and C. L. Lim
Defence Medical & Environmental Research Institute, DSO National Laboratories,
Singapore

Heat acclimatization (HA) and personal body-cooling are
effective methods of heat stress mitigation. HA involves
conditioning the body to function under hot conditions by
exposing the individual to an incremental level of heat stress
daily over 10 to 14 days. Although HA improves
thermoregulation during heat exposure, effective physical
heat exchange between the body and environment must still
take place. Operating with body armour may limit the
benefits of HA due to the increased physical workload and
greater coverage of body surface. In terms of personal
cooling, substantial amount of research has shown that a
significant amount of body heat can be removed with the
use of a personal body cooling system