News In Brief: Winter Safety Tips

News In Brief: Winter Safety Tips

• Wear layers. It is better to wear multiple thin layers rather than fewer thick layers. Layers help indoors, too.

 

• Minimize your time outside but when you need to be outdoors, say to walk the dog, bundle up with a long winter coat, gloves, a hat and a scarf. Use the scarf to cover your mouth. This helps warm the air you breath before it enters your lungs.

 

• Keep a shovel and salt in your car, which can help you (or a neighbor) get unstuck quickly and safely in the event of being snowed or iced in.

 

• Check in on older adults who may be more susceptible to hypothermia. Remember that hypothermia is not limited to exposure outdoors.

 

• Be aware of hypothermia symptoms and know that they occur gradually and that someone with hypothermia may not realize it until it’s too late. Symptoms include*:

  • Shivering

  • Clumsiness or lack of coordination

  • Slurred speech or mumbling

  • Stumbling

  • Confusion or difficulty thinking

  • Poor decision making, such as trying to remove warm clothes

  • Drowsiness or very low energy

  • Apathy or lack of concern about one’s condition

  • Progressive loss of consciousness

  • Weak pulse

  • Slow, shallow breathing

  • *According to the MayoClinic

    For more information, please click here.