Staying Warm and Safe in Canadian Winters

There’s a snowstorm today, and I’m fighting off a bit of a cold at home.  My thoughts have turned to staying warm while enjoying winter activities.  I did a quick scan of the web and found some good information from the Canadian Red Cross and I’ve reproduced it here for your benefit ~ Ed.When enjoying the outdoors, its important to know when someone has been exposed to the cold for too long. Here are some tips to help prevent cold-related emergencies and be able to provide help when needed.

Prevent

• Cover your head and trunk by wearing a hat and layers of tightly woven fabrics such as wool or synthetics.
• Cover up exposed areas such as your fingers, cheeks ears and nose.
• If your clothes get wet when you are in the cold, change into dry clothes as soon as possible.
• Drink plenty of warm fluids to help your body stay warm, but avoid caffeine and alcohol.

Recognize

•  Mild hypothermia - Shivering and complaining of cold, numbness in fingers and toes, body temperature slightly below normal.
• Moderate hypothermia - Shivering, numbness in fingers and toes, lack of coordination and/or speech, confused or unusual behaviour, impaired judgment.
• Severe - Person has stopped shivering and complaining of cold, lack of coordination and/or speech, confused or unusual behaviour, impaired judgment, glassy stare, body temperature below 30 ̊C, breathing has slowed down or stopped, possible unconsciousness.

Help

• Call EMS/9-1-1 for severe hypothermia.
• Treat the person gently and monitor breathing carefully.
• Get the person away from the cold and into shelter.
• Remove any wet clothing and gently dry the person.
• Warm the person by wrapping him or her in blankets or putting on dry clothing. Cover the head and neck. Warm the person slowly.

• If hot water bottles or heating pads are available put them under armpits, around the groin and back of the neck being careful not to burn these areas.

• Do not rub areas that appear to be affected by frostbite.

• If the person is alert, give him or her sips of warm liquids to drink.

• Active re-warming such as hot baths should be used only when the person is far from a medical facility.

You can also, download this helpful handout directly from the Canadian Red Cross website.

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