When it gets cold outside, the human body uses these amazing mechanisms to keep warm. Study them to learn how to handle freezing weather to avoid putting yourself at risk of frostbite.
Your blood vessels are narrowing
The human body always maintains a stable temperature of about thirty-seven degrees. When the ambient temperature drops, thermoreceptors on the skin start sounding alarms, alerting a part of the brain called the hypothalamus that acts as a thermostat. The first result of the activation of the hypothalamus is the contraction of blood vessels in the hands, palms, legs, and feet. The blood delivers warmth to the skin. Reducing blood flow can reduce heat loss. It is because of this mechanism that the limbs are most at risk during a long stay in the cold - they receive a minimum of heat.
You feel the urge to urinate
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The contraction of blood vessels leads to the fact that the fluids in the body are concentrated. This affects the volume receptors, which indicate to the brain that some of the fluid should be disposed of. This makes you want to visit the toilet. This is a fairly common phenomenon - for example, people who are skiing go outside and immediately feel that they need to use the toilet again, even though they have just been in it. This is not a physiological, but a psychological effect.
You shiver
It is quite obvious that in the cold you start to shiver. The reason behind this reaction is interesting. When vasoconstriction is not helping your body to warm up, the hypothalamus causes the muscles to contract. One of the side effects of muscle contraction is heat. If you start to feel cold, shivering can quite effectively raise your body temperature. Of course, this applies to those cases when the cold is not too intense; if you get frostbite and cannot be warm, shivering will not help you protect yourself from frost.
You freeze much faster if you get wet
Why do small children tremble when they get out of the warm pool in summer? The fact is that water removes heat from the body twenty-five times faster than air, so you instantly cool off if your skin is wet. Shivering allows your body to keep the temperature at the right level. If you find yourself in a critical situation, take all the necessary measures to prevent your clothes from getting wet - this will greatly increase the danger.
You endanger yourself if you drink alcohol
Think a serving of hard liquor will help keep you warm? You are seriously mistaken! The body's first reaction to cold is to constrict blood vessels, but alcoholic beverages have the opposite effect. They cause the blood vessels to dilate and emit heat intensely into the environment. Your skin will feel warm to the touch, but a false sense of security because your body temperature will actually decrease. This can lead to severe frostbite. Try to avoid drinking alcohol when you are outside in cold weather.
You may get too cold if you dress too warmly
For example, you are actively spending time outdoors. Your muscles contract and generate heat, so your temperature rises. Your blood vessels begin to dilate instead of narrowing, you sweat. If this sweat gets under your clothes, you will begin to lose heat. This is a recipe for frostbite. This is why it is important to dress not too warmly if you know you will be constantly moving. This will keep your skin dry and heat exchanges in your body normally.
You feel like hunching over and shrinking
When the body has already used vasoconstriction and muscle tremors for heating, a line of social behavior begins to help keep warm. You shrink and try to make yourself smaller so as not to lose heat from the surface of your body. Also, you may want to snuggle up to someone else. This is a common psychological mechanism.
Your brain activity decreases
When your body experiences too much temperature drop, your brain and nervous system begin to experience problems with normal functioning. The hypothalamus tries all the mechanisms that usually help raise the temperature, if they do not work, disorientation begins. Sometimes people who are frozen are found without any clothes at all - the brain gave them a signal of feeling incredible heat in an attempt to somehow improve the situation. If the chill becomes severe, the most frightening consequences occur - you simply cannot control yourself in such a situation.
Your skin may turn white and thick
This is a sign of frostbite, in which the skin becomes too cold and freezes. The cheeks, nose, and fingers are particularly at risk because less blood flows into them due to vasoconstriction. In addition, fingers are cylindrical in shape, which means that their surface is larger in comparison with their size - they are more susceptible to heat loss. Frostbite damages the skin. If the damage is severe, the skin may darken and detach from the body. In the cold, you will feel pain only for the first time, when the skin becomes colder and colder, the sensations will be more and more muted. This suggests that the thermoreceptors in it stop working. If you have the opportunity to return to a warm room, be sure to watch for such signs and do not stay outside when they appear.
Your skin may develop a rash and redden
Some people have an allergic reaction to cold, not necessarily even frosty weather. It is associated not so much with the reaction to a decrease in temperature, but with dry air, which can negatively affect sensitive skin. When warm weather returns, the skin condition returns to normal.
You have trouble breathing
Usually, when you breathe in air, your nose helps moisturize and warm it before it enters your lungs. However, for some people, such as those with asthma, and sometimes anyone else, if the weather is too cold, the nose may not be up to the task. If you inhale too cold, your lungs begin to contract, making breathing difficult. Try not to panic and inhale more slowly so that the air has time to warm up.
Your muscles are not doing the job
When the muscle tissue cools down, it can no longer function normally. First, you lose the ability to handle tasks that require fine motor skills, such as being unable to use your phone correctly. Then you notice that you cannot do even simpler tasks. This condition can be very dangerous.
Marina Ilyushenko