How cities and people can beat the heat

One easy way to combat the harsh summer sun could be painting your roof white — an idea long embraced by Greeks. A black roof absorbs most of the sunlight that hits it, heating up the underlying home like an oven. Light-colored surfaces, on the other hand, can reflect up to 80 percent of the sun's rays, keeping inside temperatures cooler. That also means a lower carbon footprint and energy bill.

Bodies of water like lakes, canals and rivers can help bring down the temperature in cities, cooling the surrounding air when it evaporates. Water doesn't adjust to temperature changes quickly and so, to an extent, can maintain a certain level of heat or coldness. Urban areas short on space don't need to have a huge lake to benefit from this cooling effect — fountains can also help.

Planting trees is a simple way to create cool spaces in cities. Specifically, it's the shade they provide and the water they evaporate through their leaves that make the real difference. If planted strategically along streets or around buildings, they can significantly cool inside temperatures and combat the urban heat island effect.

According to a study by the Technical University of Munich, several small parks can better cool a city than one big one. That's because large parks lower temperatures in one specific place, while small parks, if evenly spread out, can impact a much wider area. Connecting city green spaces with wind corridors can also help air flow and to reduce heat.

If you don't want to paint your roof white, green roofs, or rooftop gardens, can also have a cooling impact on urban areas. The vegetation absorbs heat through the evaporation of rain water, while at the same time insulating the building and reducing the need for air conditioning. Rooftops also make a great place to plant vegetables, from pumpkins (above) to carrots.

While you're building your rooftop garden, you also might want to consider planting some chili. That's because spicy food, believe it or not, can keep you cool. It forces you to sweat, lowering your body temperature.

When temperatures rise above 30 degrees, it might seem sensible to eat ice cream or drink something cold. That's not what the experts advise, though. Just like spicy food, drinking hot tea will increase your body temperature and cause you to sweat, which in turn cools your body down.