Avoiding Three Common Ice and Snow Health Hazards

For the time being, my husband Bill and I are living in sunny Georgia, where winters are typically mild and snow and ice storms are rare. But even people who live in the Deep South aren't immune to occasional severe winter weather, and this week we're dealing with the aftermath of a nasty ice storm. As I gaze at our icy front walk and think about how, just days ago, I saw a guy wearing shorts, I'm reminded that ice and snow can make some health hazards more likely to occur. If you're dealing with ice and snow where you are, here are a few things to keep in mind.

Car accidents: Slippery surfaces equal accidents waiting to happen!

Everybody knows that ice is slippery, but a lot of people still try to drive in inclement weather, anyway. In fact, yesterday morning, my husband was determined to drive to work, even though the roads were in terrible shape. He lasted just a few hours in the office before he was on his way home. The drive, which usually takes about 45 minutes, took him well over two hours, mainly because there were many car accidents.

As my husband was telling me about his drive, I asked him if going to the office had been worth the hassle. He smiled sheepishly and said it hadn't been. Very few people had shown up to work and he had gotten little done. I reminded him that going to work when the road conditions were so terrible might have made him feel conscientious or even heroic, but if he'd had a serious car accident, he might have been laid up for some time and would not have been any good to anyone.

There's a good reason why people are urged to stay home during severe weather. You may think your work is crucial, and it may very well be. But, unless your work literally makes the difference between someone's life or death, you really should consider staying home when the roads are icy. You may be the world's best driver, but you'll still have to deal with people who are driving too fast for the road conditions and you could still get in an accident. The choice to stay home or go to work is ultimately up to you, but if you think you're being a hero by trying to go to work when the weather is bad, think about how effective you'll be if you end up getting badly hurt or even killed in a car accident. And consider that if you do get hurt, one of your family members or friends may have to go out in the weather to take care of you. Please be safe and try not to drive when the roads are bad. And for heaven's sake, as tempting as it may be, try to resist the urge to go shopping on snow days... unless you can walk to the mall! And even then, be careful. You can hurt yourself slipping on the ice, too.

Heart attacks, sore muscles, and dehydration: Shoveling snow may be risky for some people!

There's a huge pile of snow in your driveway. Your sidewalk is totally covered with the white stuff. You want to clear it away with your snow shovel. If your heart is healthy, shoveling snow may provide you with an excellent chance for some exercise. But did you know studies have shown that shoveling snow puts some people at risk for heart attacks or other cardiovascular problems?

It's true. Shoveling snow is hard work and people who have heart issues may not realize how much they're exerting themselves when they clear snow. The cold weather causes the coronary arteries to constrict. Even people in good physical shape with healthy hearts tend to overexert themselves while they are shoveling snow. Consider that each shovel full of snow can weigh as much as fifteen pounds. If, in one minute, you move ten to twelve loads of snow with your shovel, you will have moved several hundred pounds of the stuff. That's a lot of work, even for someone whose heart is in excellent shape.

Aside from your heart muscle, the muscles in the rest of your body might also take quite a beating during a session spent shoveling snow. If you're not used to getting regular exercise, you may end up very stiff and sore or even injured if you're not careful.

Everybody needs their walkway or driveway shoveled sometimes. If the chore falls to you, take a few precautions before you get started. First, give yourself the chance to warm up. Take a quick walk and let your muscles get used to the cold before you pick up that shovel. Make sure you drink some water before you start the job; dehydration can be an issue even during cold weather. And, even though shoveling snow is a chore that you may want to finish as quickly as possible, take it easy and don't try to shovel too much, too fast. Instead of picking up each load of snow, try pushing it. If you have any history of heart problems, try to pass the snow shoveling job along to someone else. Now might be a good time to hire a teenager to do the work. Stop shoveling if you have any pain! A clear walkway is important, but not at the expense of your life.

Hypothermia and frostbite: When you get too cold...

Here in sunny Georgia, it rarely gets cold enough for anyone to have to worry about frostbite or hypothermia... except on the rare occasions when we have an ice or snow storm. Frostbite and hypothermia are two different conditions that can occur when the weather gets cold.

Hypothermia-- When your body temperature dips below 96 degrees Fahrenheit, that's hypothermia, and it doesn't have to be freezing cold outside for you to be at risk. According to a Web page maintained by the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Omaha, Nebraska, you can get hypothermia even by being underdressed on a 60 degree day. Elderly people are especially at risk for hypothermia, since they tend to take more medications and have medical conditions that can affect their circulation and their ability to resist the cold. Some older people also have trouble shivering effectively, which is the body's way of warming you up.

When the weather gets cold, be sure to dress in layers to keep your body temperature from dropping too low. If you can afford it, set your thermostat between 68 and 70 degrees during cold weather. Keep your pantry stocked with nutritious food; eat hot foods and drink warm drinks on cold days. Wear a hat, gloves or mittens, boots, and a scarf if you must venture outside. If you or someone you're with starts to feel sluggish or has trouble thinking clearly, call your doctor or an ambulance. In the meantime, try to get warm by wrapping up in blankets. If you're with another person or a pet, consider huddling close together so you can share body heat.

Frostbite- When the weather gets extremely cold, your body does its best to protect your vital organs above all else. In order to do that, your body diverts bloodflow that would ordinarily go to your extremities to your vital organs. If your hands, feet, ears, or nose are not properly protected in extremely cold weather, they can end up freezing.

To avoid frostbite, try to avoid going outside when it's extremely cold. If you must go outside, bundle up in layers. Be sure to protect the exposed areas of your skin and keep your skin dry. Stay out of the wind as much as possible and drink fluids to increase your blood's volume. Don't drink alcohol or caffeinated beverages, since they tend to be dehydrating and constrict your blood vessels. Drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes can also put you at risk, since they affect the way your body handles the cold.

If you start to experience frostbite, go indoors and warm up those cold extremities. Take a warm bath or use your armpits, a warm companion or pet, or warm clothes to get the blood flowing again. If your skin appears to be blue, swollen, very blistered, is very painful or feels hard and numb, get to a hospital. Frostbite that isn't promptly treated can lead to gangrene.

Snow and ice can be beautiful...

And it can also be very hazardous. My advice to those who are dealing with severe weather, particularly if they aren't used to it, is to embrace the storm. Stay inside, watch a movie, and enjoy Mother Nature's way of slowing things down. If you don't have to go to work, don't. The fewer people who are out and about when the weather gets bad, the lighter the workload will be for those who do have to go to work.

Sources

Childs, D. and Cox, L. (Feb. 12, 2010) "Is Shoveling A Risk For Heart Attack? Yes" Retrieved from: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/HeartFailureNews/heart-attack-risk-shoveling-snow/story?id=9812385&page=1

Ice and Snow Hazards
http://daq.state.nc.us/employee/safety/snow.pdf

National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, Omaha/Valley, NE
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/safety/frostbite.php