Fresh ways of chilling out

There's nothing like a taste of the Med in London, but as the heat soars towards 100 degrees this Wednesday, we've got some great ideas on how to keep cool. From eating curry (!) to downing chrysanthemum tea and putting your bedsheets in the fridge...

Eat small meals and eat more often. The larger the meal, the more metabolic heat your body creates breaking down the food. Avoid foods that are high in protein, which increase metabolic heat.

Run your wrists under a cold tap for five seconds each every couple of hours. Because a main vein passes through this area, it helps cool the blood.

Eat spicy food. Although this may be the last thing you fancy in hot weather, curries and chillies can stimulate heat receptors in the mouth, enhance circulation and cause sweating, which cools the body down.

Take a tepid bath or shower just below body temperature, especially before bedtime. Although a cold shower might sound more tempting, your body generates heat afterwards to compensate for the heat loss.

If you have a basement, use it during the hottest hours of the day when the sun is highest. Basements are usually 10-15 degrees cooler than the upstairs part of the house.

Wear lightweight, light-coloured cotton clothes. Heat is trapped by synthetic fibres, but cotton absorbs perspiration and its evaporation causes you to feel cooler. The light colours reflect the sun's radiation.

While you're out, keep the house curtains drawn to stop it heating up like a greenhouse.

You may be longing for a cold beer or a chilled white wine sprintzer. But you should avoid alcohol because it dehydrates the body. You are better off with mineral water or low-sugar fizzy drinks. Also, avoid drinks with caffeine such as coffee and colas. These increase the metabolic heat in the body.

Women should replace their usual body moisturiser with a cooling aloe vera aftersun product to use morning and night. This will help lower your skin temperature.

Slow down and avoid strenuous activity which will stimulate your body and raise its core temperature. If you must go jogging, do it during the coolest part of the day, which is usually before 7am.

Get Liquid Ice. This re-useable ice wrap is perfect for cooling hot skin. The cloth, pre-soaked in the Liquid Ice solution, cools instantly when removed from the packet without need for refridgeration. It costs £5.99 at Boots.

Get some some Mentholatum Migraine Ice patches. These soft gel patches - designed to soothe headaches - come into their own during heatwaves as they instantly reduce skin temperature when applied. They cost £2.99 from chemists.

Drink chrysanthemum tea. Practitioners say chrysanthemum is a cooling herb which clears the head.

Hire an air-conditioning unit from £30 a week. Placed in the corner of the room, this box - no bigger than a bedside cabinet - will cool things down within half an hour. Alternatively, invest in air-conditioning for your home. One room can be arctic cool from £1,600 - and the unit doubles as a heater.

The night before you go out for the day in the sun, roll some damp flannels up and pop them in the freezer. Take them with you in a plastic bag. Then, when you start to feel hot, unwrap them and place them over your face.

Buy a Chillow. It's a thin, soft, thermo-regulating leather device that pops into your pillow to cool it down. In studies, Chillow users got to sleep an average of 68 per cent faster. It is available by mail order at £24.95 from 020 8523 7395.

Try a Native American herbal remedy called Black Cohosh which has been clinically proven to relieve hot flushes and night sweats in menopausal women. Recent research suggests it works on the hypothalamus, where it may help regulate body temperature.

Ditch your duvet and sleep under a sheet instead. Even better, put your sheets in a plastic bag and stick them in the fridge a couple of hours before going to bed. As we fall asleep our body temperature lowers, which is why it's difficult to sleep in hot weather. Cold sheets straight from the fridge should help you sleep better.

Sleep on a feather or down pillow with a cotton pillowcase. Synthetic pillows will retain heat.

Sit back, close your eyes and picture snow. Research has shown that the body reacts to these daydreams, reducing its overall temperature.