How is heat stress different from heat illness?

• A. Heat stress is the buildup in the body of heat generated by your muscles during work and by a warm or hot work environment, while heat illness includes disorders that can occur when the body is subjected to more heat than it can cope with.
• B. Heat illness is caused by cold exposure.
• C. Heat stress and heat illness are identical concepts.
• D. Heat stress only occurs indoors.

Answer: (A)

Heat load from activity and the surrounding environment creates the body’s physiological strain, called heat stress. When the body can’t dissipate that excess heat effectively, disorders can develop, which are heat illnesses such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke. So heat stress is about the bodily strain from heat, while heat illness refers to the actual health problems that arise when the body can’t cope with that heat. The other ideas aren’t correct because heat illness is not caused by cold exposure, the two are not identical, and heat stress can occur indoors or outdoors, not just in one setting.