ANDERSON — A week full of 90 degree days and a lack of rain has left Anderson hot and dry, except for all the sweat.

Coupled with Indiana’s infamous humidity, the heat index has been over 100 as people seek ways to stay cool and safe as the weather stays hot.

“This has been the hottest stretch of the year so far,” said Chad Omitt, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service. “It’s been 90 degrees or hotter for the last five days.”

But although it is the first round of heat for the summer, Omitt says it is not unusually hot for this time of year.

“The heat is not unprecedented; we had days last year in the 90s in June,” he said. “I think people just weren’t acclimated to the heat and the humidity yet.”

With temperatures remaining so high, anyone who spends too much time in the heat is putting their health at risk.

“This is the time of year when we usually start seeing cases of heat exhaustion or even heat stroke,” said Dr. Kevin Smith of the Med One urgent care facility.

Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are caused where the body overheats. The body normally controls temperature by sweating, but the humidity in Indiana can keep this process from being affective.

“When you sweat and it evaporates, it lowers your body temperature,” Smith said. “But with the humidity being so high, you sweat and that doesn’t go away, so you sweat more and then you become dehydrated. That’s when you can get into trouble.”

According to Smith, heat exhaustion is marked by a combination of symptoms including fatigue, dizziness, muscle cramps and elevated pulse. It should be treated seriously to prevent the person from having a heat stroke.

“A heat stroke is much more serious than heat exhaustion,” he said. “It occurs when your body can’t regulate body temperature and it gets very high. It can lead to confusion, loss of consciousness, shock and, in rare cases, even death.”

But there a few tricks people can use to beat the heat and avoid medical complications.

“Wear loose, light-fitting clothing, drink lots of water and if your feeling overheated, get in the shade or inside in the air-conditioning or by a fan,” he said.

But many local residents have found the best way to stay cool on these hot summer days.