Greensboro, NC -- You've heard the advice: wear light-colored clothing and don't drink caffeinated beverages or alcohol, but there are heat dangers a lot of people don't know about.
According to the National Weather Service, heat is the number one weather-related killer in the United States.
On Friday, heat claimed the lives of two young children in Tennessee.
Police charged 25-year-old Samantha Harper with aggravated child abuse. They said she left her two and three-year-old children in a hot car.
Authorities found their bodies in the driveway near a parked car. Police said they likely suffered heat stroke, but a medical examiner will still determine the cause of death.
Experts warn that kids' body temperatures rise three to five times faster than adults.
"Which means, if you got the car heating up 30 degrees in a matter of 10-15 minutes, then that 30 degrees for a child is going to be multiplied by about three to five times," said Sandy Ellington, Health Educator with the Guilford County Health Department.
But according to Ellington, even just being outside for too long can be dangerous.
You can become dehydrated in a matter of minutes, which can quickly lead to heat exhaustion, and then heat stroke.
Ellington said everyone should be drinking water or sports drinks every 10 to 15 minutes, especially kids.
"If you are thirsty, then you've already begun to dehydrate. And a child may tell you, 'I'm thirsty,' but don't wait for the child to tell you they're thirsty. Go ahead and give them something to drink, and you yourself drink something before you get thirsty," said Ellington.
Ellington said what you drink should be room temperature, even lukewarm. An ice-cold drink will shock your system.
She added that when it's humid, you need to drink even more often. And when you're swimming outside, you could be even more prone to dehydration.
"You may think, 'oh, I'm cool, I'm in the pool,' but you're still dehydrating because you're still losing the fluid and you're losing the salt content in your body as well," said Ellington.
If you stop sweating, that's a sign of heat exhaustion.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2011, 206 people died from extreme heat, which was well above the 10-year average of 119 heat-related deaths.
WFMY News 2