Avoiding winter’s bite
When cold weather hits, the best way to avoid frostbite is to stay inside and keep warm. But that doesn’t always work for many of us, particularly those who work outside or enjoy outdoor winter activities. So, what can you do to avoid frostbite if you must go outside?
When you are exposed to temperatures below the freezing point of skin, tissues freeze and you are susceptible to frostbite. Most people who get frostbite are males aged 30 to 49 while many frostbite cases are seen in alcoholics, people with psychiatric illness, car accident/breakdown victims, and recreational drug users. The most commonly affected areas are extremities—the nose, cheeks, ears, fingers, and toes.
If you have superficial frostbite, you may experience burning, numbness, tingling, itching, or cold sensations in affected areas. Deep frostbite has an initial decrease in sensation that is eventually completely lost. Blisters may appear, and the frostbite area will be hard and may even appear blackened and dead.
So, what can you do to avoid frostbite?
Dress warmly and in layers. Wear mittens instead of gloves. Wear two pairs of socks with the inner layer made of a material to wick water away from your skin. Wear waterproof shoes. Cover your head, face, nose, and ears. Wear loose fitting clothing to avoid a decrease in blood flow to arms and legs. Travel with a friend. And don’t smoke or drink alcohol.
Talk. Watch. Lock.
Chances are you have prescription drugs at home. And if you have teens or young adults in your home, you could unknowingly be their drug dealer. Pennsylvanians need to be aware of the troubling trend of prescription drug abuse, particularly by teens. According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America1:
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Twelve to 17 year olds abuse prescription drugs more than they abuse ecstasy, crack/cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine combined.
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Sixty percent of teens who have abused prescription painkillers did so before age 15.
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There are as many new abusers age 12 to 17 of prescription drugs as there are of marijuana.
Member Adam Gordon, MD, internal medicine physician and addiction medicine specialist in Pittsburgh notes, “Physicians prescribe drugs to treat a specific condition, in a specific person, with a specific medical history and make up. When used by someone else, prescription drugs can cause dramatic increases in blood pressure and heart rate, organ damage, addiction, difficulty breathing, seizures and even death.”
Dr. Gordon considers pain medications such as Vicodin, Morphine and OxyContin particularly dangerous. “Many patients are on these medications long term and accumulate a supply in their medicine cabinets. If the cabinet or bathroom door is unlocked, anyone in your home can pilfer a few tablets that will go unnoticed by the patient.”
Prescription drugs are not safe when taken by someone else,” adds Daniel Glunk, MD, Internal Medicine, Williamsport and President of the Pennsylvania Medical Society. “When used as prescribed, medications like painkillers, depressants and stimulants are certainly beneficial, but in the wrong hands, they can be deadly. It’s critical that parents talk to your teens about the dangers, watch your prescriptions carefully and lock them up if possible. If you have concerns about prescription drug abuse, please talk with your doctor.”
Be careful or you’ll break something
More than one million Pennsylvanians have osteoporosis2, a serious and debilitating disease that causes bones to weaken and fracture easily. Though once thought of as an inevitable condition of aging, it’s now addressed across all age groups, beginning in childhood.
Your bones are the strongest in your late teens and early twenties, followed by a “maintenance” period. Then, after age 50, bone loss occurs more rapidly, particularly for women after menopause. Chronic steroid use, certain medications, early menopause, low testosterone levels, smoking and previous fractures also can put you at additional risk.
According to Philadelphia physician and member John Cacciamani, MD, Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, every person will experience bone loss in his or her lifetime. “The development and maintenance of strong bones needs to begin in childhood and continue throughout your life. Getting enough calcium and Vitamin D at all ages is critical, as is weight-bearing physical activity, like walking or jogging.”
Since osteoporosis can occur without symptoms, Dr. Cacciamani suggests talking with your doctor about having your bone mass measured. If you already have osteoporosis, ask about the many medications now available to address bone loss.