Why you have to be extra careful if you\u2019re out drinking alcohol in freezing temperatures.<\/p>\n
The cold weather is definitely setting in again, but that doesn\u2019t mean social lives have ground to a halt. However, if your destination is the pub or a club and you\u2019re drinking alcohol, it\u2019s important that you take extra care in the cold<\/p>\n
Alcohol can make you think that you\u2019re warm. But the balmy glow and red cheeks that come with a drink are deceptive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you drink, it dilates the peripheral blood vessels near your skin, which means more blood \u2013 and heat \u2013 flows to these vessels,\u201d says Professor Colin Drummond, head of the Section of Alcohol Research at King\u2019s College London. \u201cThat takes blood and heat away from the core of your body. So while it feels like you\u2019re warm because your skin is warm, your vital organs aren\u2019t as warm as you might think they are.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you then go out in the cold after drinking, because you\u2019ve got a lot of heat on the periphery of your body, you can lose heat very easily and quickly. And that can be dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
When you\u2019ve been drinking heavily and then venture out into arctic conditions, the faulty internal thermometer coupled with the dulling of senses and bravado that alcohol can create, can spell trouble.<\/p>\n
\u201cDrinking too much leads to bad decisions,\u201d says Prof Drummond. \u201cIf you drunkenly decide to walk home across a snowy field instead of getting a taxi, you\u2019re putting yourself at risk. Hypothermia can take hold quickly and can even lead to death.\u201d<\/p>\n
Professor Malcolm Woollard is the chair of the British Paramedic Association. He says: \u201cA huge proportion of emergency calls that our paramedics deal with are to do with alcohol. Sometimes \u2013 and especially when temperatures are low \u2013 we do treat people who have drank too much, perhaps missed the last bus home, passed out outside and ended up with hypothermia.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continues: \u201cThen, of course, there are the people we treat that have been drinking and then slipped on ice or snow and hurt themselves. Alcohol and cold temperatures are a lethal combination.\u201d<\/p>\n