DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My mother is 92 and lives by herself. She’s quite independent and does well. A neighbor takes her grocery shopping, and we take her to other places she has to go. She is extremely set in her ways.

I offered to have her home air-conditioned. She won’t hear of it. She says she’s used a fan all her life, and she likes to keep the windows opened.

I worry about someone her age tolerating heat, and it gets very hot here. Can you provide some arguments that would change her mind? — D.A.

ANSWER: Your offer to air-condition your mother’s home is a kind gesture and has lots of merit. I’m not about to challenge your mother. She has successfully lived a long life, and I could learn from her. People in the past lived comfortably without air conditioning.

Your mother does have to be on guard for dehydration and heat sickness.

During hot summers, everyone has to stay well hydrated. Older people’s sense of thirst is not as reliable an indicator of fluid needs as is younger people’s thirst sense. She should sip water all day long, or she can choose any beverage she likes, including tea. Cooled drinks help keep the body cooled.

Evaporation is the chief means the body has for staying cool. Not only is an older person’s thirst sensation blunted, but so is the ability to sweat. Evaporation of sweat cools the body. I don’t mean visible sweat; the sweating I mean is imperceptible but constant. Her fan helps evaporate that imperceptible sweat. However, with a reduced capacity to sweat, older people are at greater risk of suffering from a heat injury.

Increased body heat increases the body’s need for oxygen, and that stresses the heart.

On very hot days, how about inviting your mother over to your house until the hot spell breaks?

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I have a problem that I am reluctant to talk to the doctor about. It’s a rectal itch. I have tried many preparations, but they haven’t worked. What would you suggest? — L.F.

ANSWER: I’ll mention a few self-remedies, but if the itch doesn’t leave promptly, see a doctor. Too many conditions are responsible for such an itch, and each one has a different treatment. Psoriasis, pinworms, eczema and Bowen’s disease are a few of the conditions causing a rectal itch. The doctor isn’t going to faint when you mention this problem. It’s a very common complaint.

Make a couple of diet changes. Stop taking anything that has caffeine. The same goes for citrus fruits, tomatoes and chocolate. If these are the culprits, two weeks away from them should break the itch.

Use moist cotton balls in place of toilet paper. Or you can use commercial products like Tucks.

Take an antihistamine before going to bed. Itching usually worsens at night.

Those are enough home remedies.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: In 1899, my great-grandfather died of Bright’s disease, and 15 years later, his youngest son, my grandfather, died of it. Both men had immigrated from Germany, where they were farmers. Can Bright’s disease be contracted through heredity? You don’t hear much about it these days. Is it a potent health threat? — J.A.

ANSWER: Dr. Richard Bright, an English doctor who lived from 1789 to 1858, was the first doctor to recognize that protein in the urine was a sign of kidney disease. His name came to indicate all kidney diseases. This was in the days before there were many scientific tests to distinguish one kidney condition from the many others.

The term “Bright’s disease” has been dropped in preference to using the exact name of the kidney trouble.

Some kidney diseases are inherited, but they are in the minority.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com.

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