A few tips will help you fight against the cold and thus avoid frostbite and frostbite. Some are just common sense and others, less known, come to bring comfort to your hands and feet.

Frostbite and frostbite: what’s the difference?

It’s hard to tell the difference between frostbite and frostbite: not only do these two words sound the same, they are also both linked to the cold. However, there are differences, especially in terms of their characteristics and severity.

Frostbite is often confused with frostbite, which is the consequence of too much cold on the skin, causing damage by the cold : the fingertips are strictly speaking frozen, hurt, can swell or even bubble and then necrose, as we see in mountaineers or homeless people for example.

Frostbite occurs in most cases in young adults and especially in women. They appear only in wet and cold periods and the manifestations disappear with the return of fine weather. They are characterized by red skin and strong stinging.

More serious than frostbite, frostbite is manifested by blue skin that has become unresponsive. Rare but serious, frostbite results from prolonged stay in freezing cold. At the first stage of this skin freezing, the extremities become numb, turn white and numb, then blue-black before becoming covered with blisters.

How to protect yourself from frostbite and frostbite?

These two symptoms being related to the cold, it is absolutely necessary, to avoid them, to fight against the latter.

The first precaution is to cover the affected areas well, that is to say the hands and feet. So wear gloves, mittens or mittens on your hands and warm socks for the feet.. Choose natural materials like wool or cotton and avoid synthetic, which promotes perspiration.

Certain purchases can also allow you to fight against the cold. You can find in sports stores, in the hiking department, small heaters to slip into your pocket.. They will give you the effect of a small hot water bottle and reduce the cold on your hands. Also think about put woolen soles in your shoes, that will insulate and warm your feet. There are even heated thermal insoles: luxury!

Still concerning the feet, be sure to wearing shoes wide enough to avoid being too tight and cutting off your blood circulation. If this precaution is not enough and the frostbite still recurs on one toe or on an area of ​​the sole of the foot, you can have it made by a specialist in insoles or protective orthotics for the toes.

To fight against the cold, you can also use Tiger Balm. Indeed, this ointment has stimulating effects on the blood circulation and it is therefore very effective in warming the cold extremities of the body. Before going out, massage your feet and hands with a small dab of Tiger Balm then put on your socks and gloves. Be careful, however, this ointment containing essential oils, it is contraindicated in pregnant or breastfeeding women as well as children under the age of seven.

If you are a smoker, avoid lighting a cigarette even if you think it will help you fight the cold. Tobacco has a vasoconstrictor effect bad for the blood circulation of the fingers. Do not forget either that drinking alcohol does not fight against the cold: on the contrary, it lowers the body temperature.

Otherwise, avoid vasoconstrictor medications such as those used for colds orally or nasally. Finally, if these measures are not sufficient, the doctor may prescribe vasodilators such as calcium channel blockers (nifedipine, diltiazem, verapamil, etc.) during the cold season.

Perrine de Robien

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