Early morning exercise on the boardwalks at Kandawgyi Lake in Yangon.

IF you thought summer felt hotter than usual, you’d probably be right. Cyclone Nargis dramatically reduced the number of shade-providing trees in Yangon and, while this didn’t actually increase the temperature, it meant there was less protection from the sun’s rays.

“People will suffer more from heat this year because we do not have as many trees in Yangon after many of them were destroyed by Nargis,” consultant physician and rheumatologist Dr Chit Soe told The Myanmar Times in April.

So, after the summer just gone, many people are probably looking forward to monsoon and the resulting drop in temperature.

Others, though, will not. With the changing of the seasons, it’s common to hear complaints of illness, from the common cold to more elaborate ailments.

It seems everyone has their own health regime to ward off these ills, so The Myanmar Times asked several people what their secret was to staying healthy through the changing of the seasons.

Daw Oo Sein, 60, says she finds boiled water is the most suitable way to balance her body temperature in the cold season, so she shuns drinking cold water.

“I also take Myanmar traditional medicine early in the morning to balance my blood pressure. After every meal, I also take a small amount of traditional medicine so I don’t have any digestion problems,” she says.

“I can’t bear to be cold. If I get wet, I get bad aches and pains, especially in my legs. On rainy days, I have to bathe with warm water and keep medicine in my handbag wherever I go,” says accountant Ma Hay Mar. “And I have to avoid eating foods that can cause aches, like mushrooms and bamboo shoots.”

Mr Lee Chou Liang, a Chinese traditional physician, said the cold weather exacerbates aches for people suffering from gout.

“If you get wet, you should change your clothes immediately and wear warm clothes. What is more, if you are suffering gout, you shouldn’t eat eggs and fried foods. There’s one traditional way of easing aches, and that’s to rub the sore joint with egg white.”

Ma May Thwe says she believes exercise is the best way to stay fit and healthy so she changes her exercise regime to fit the weather conditions.

“In Myanmar, many people only do exercises in winter, but for me, I do exercise in every season. If it’s rainy season, I go to the fitness centre a lot. This is easier now there are a lot of fitness centres in Yangon, it is good for people who enjoy doing exercise,” she said.

There are now many Myanmar people working or studying abroad and they have to live in climates that are significantly different to their native country.

Ko Myo Kyaw Win, an engineer working in Singapore, says he is now having trouble dealing with the island-nation’s hot season.

“[At the moment it is] very hot in here, hotter than Myanmar. There are only two seasons in Singapore, rainy season and summer. If I move even a little bit I sweat a lot so I have to take re-hydration salts to cover the water I am losing from my body. If I don’t [take rehydration salts] I can get a sore throat, dry palate, tiredness and weakness, cracking lips and acne on my face,” he said.

“Most Singaporeans are very keen to do exercise, so we can see people gathering in front of shopping centres and in parks to do exercises, mostly on Saturday evening. And workers in my office, when we arrive at the office about 8am, we have to do physical exercise for about 15 minutes.”

Some Myanmar wind up living in climates that are even more extreme. Ko Ye Nay Latt says it has taken him three years to adjust to Moscow’s frigid winters, where the temperature regularly drops to minus10 Celsius in winter.

“I am now used to the weather in Russia as I have been studying here for three years,” he says. “When the weather changes from winter to spring in Russia, most of the Myanmar people who live here are sick with flu, while local people are sneezing a lot and have a running nose – it’s just common seasonal sickness for them.”

“[Now] we are having spring with some rains, and now the sun doesn’t set until late at night. It’s a good chance for us to do some kind of physical exercise, like playing football.”