brrrr! it’s cold outside! staying healthy and safe during the winter

Brrrr! It’s cold outside!

Staying healthy and safe during the winter

Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights

Seasons in the United States

spring summer

Fall (autumn) winter


Winter can be fun, but also risky to your health


The most important step to staying healthy in the winter is to dress warmly!

ALWAYS WEAR a warm hat or scarf a warm winter coat warm mittens or gloves pants or leggings socks warm boots


Wearing layers of clothes

The best way to stay warm and feel

comfortable is to wear layers of

clothing. That way, you can take off one layer if you get too warm.


Most of your body heat is lost to the cold weather through your head, so make sure

you wear a hat or a headscarf.


Wear mittens or gloves

Fingers can actually freeze (get frostbitten) in cold winter weather, so make sure they are

covered.


Keep your legs and feet warm

Leggings and long underwear worn under yourdress, skirt, or pants help your legs stay warm

Wear extra socks if necessary.– Some socks can be long, others short– Wool socks are the warmest

Always wear boots in the snow


In your home

Your apartment has a heating system. Ask your landlord how to control the heat in your apartment

so that it is not too cold and not too hot.


Keep your home comfortable, but not too hot

Turning up the heat very high in your apartment makes the air very dry and it is not good for you. Keep the temperature at about 74° (23°C).

If you are cold, put on a sweater.

If you are hot, turn down the heat. Do not take off your clothes or your children’s clothes.

Always wear something on your feet (sandals or socks). Buildings in Chicago are old, and sometimes there are cold drafts (bits of cold air that come in from the outside).


Dry skin and mouths

The heating systems in buildings often make the air very dry. The dry air

makes our skin, mouths, and noses dry.

Make sure to put on plenty of skin lotion (men and women) to keep your skin

from getting dry and cracked.

Use lip balm for your lips. (Lip balm is not lipstick. It is colorless and helps

protect your lips.)

Use petroleum jelly (like Vaseline) for your feet and hands if they get very

dry.


Keeping the air moist in your homes

Household heat often makes air dry. You can help put moisture back in the air by using a humidifier which you can buy at a drugstore.

You can also put a pan of water on top of your radiator. The water in the pan will evaporate, and then you should pour

more water into the pan.


Cold Weather emergencies

FROSTBITE

Frostbite occurs when you ears, nose, fingers, or toes actually freeze. Frostbite is serious and can result in an amputation of the frozen parts of your body.


Avoiding frostbite

Wear a hat that covers your ears Wear a scarf over your face Wear gloves under your mittens Wear two or three pairs of socks Put your hands under your arms to

keep them warm

Inside his jacket, the boy has his hands under his arms.


Cold weather emergency

Hypothermia: when one’s body temperature goes below 98.6° F (37°C). If the body temperature gets too low, the person can freeze to death.

To avoid hypothermia:

Dress warm to keep your body temperature normal.

Drink warm tea, soup, or other liquids.


Cold weather emergency

Sometimes in the winter it snows so much that the power lines fail or fall down. That means there is no electricity for lights or heat for people’s homes. This is called a cold weather emergency.


Warming Centers

In the event that there is a power outage and you have no heat in your home, you are encouraged to go to a “warming center” set up by city officials. Warming centers are public places like libraries or other community centers where you can stay until the power and heat is returned to your home.


If you lose heat in your home during a snow emergency

If there is a snow emergency and you lose heat in your home, call your landlord. If the problem is a power outage in your neighborhood, you will have to go to a warming center.

Ask someone who speaks English to call 3-1-1 to find out where the nearest warming center is. Do not call 9-1-1.

Tell you case manager if you need to go to a warming center.


At the warming center

Bring to the warming center whatever your family will need for two days, especially medicine, diapers, and things to entertain children.


Any questions?

Enjoy winter in Chicago, but stay warm and stay

safe!

Heartland Health Outreach

Refugee Health Education and Promotion

Winter 2007-08

brrrr! it’s cold outside! staying healthy and safe during the winter

Documents

heartland alliance

dry air

air dry

snow slide

health slide

cold winter weather

warm wear extra socks

warm winter coat warm