[Reading Science] To Have a Warm Winter, Protect Your 'Neck and Feet'?

Keeping the important artery from the neck to the brain warm helps greatly in maintaining body temperature.
[Image captured from YouTube screen]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] Early this year, temperatures are hovering below freezing. Is the real cold season beginning? Although this winter is certainly warmer than usual, it is still cold when temperatures drop below zero.

When your whole body feels chilly, instead of trying to fight the cold, the priority is to warmly cover the areas where you feel the cold. When cold weather strikes, hypothermia, frostbite, and chilblains?cold-related illnesses caused directly by the cold?can lead to casualties.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, from December 1, 2018, to February 28 of last year, the cold-related illness emergency room surveillance system recorded 404 patients, of whom 10 died. Among these patients, the elderly aged 65 and over accounted for the largest portion, 177 people, which is 44% of the total.

People who spend long hours outdoors in cold places, the elderly, and patients with diabetic complications should take special precautions against the cold. When body temperature drops due to cold, our body's energy metabolism decreases. When skin temperature lowers, the hypothalamus in the brain detects this and commands the body to quickly generate heat energy. The more sensitively the skin temperature reacts, the faster the hypothalamus can gather and process information.

However, elderly people with reduced muscle mass have less efficient information transmission through the skin and slower physical activity to generate heat energy. Patients with diabetic complications have higher insulin resistance and glycated hemoglobin levels in winter, resulting in a mortality rate from cold that is seven times higher than from heat.

Thus, cold is a major factor causing 'vascular diseases.' When exposed to cold, the body activates the sympathetic nervous system, or excitatory nerves, to protect itself. This causes blood vessels to constrict and the pulse to quicken. This process puts a load on the heart and increases peripheral vascular resistance, raising blood pressure.

At the same time, blood viscosity increases, making the blood sticky and forming 'blood clots.' These clots block narrowed blood vessels, causing problems. If a clot blocks the coronary arteries leading to the heart, it causes myocardial infarction; if it blocks vessels to the brain, oxygen supply to the brain is delayed, causing stroke; and if it blocks vessels to the legs, it results in peripheral artery occlusion.

The best way to protect body temperature from the cold is to protect the 'neck and feet.' In other words, it means keeping warm the blood vessels in the neck and feet, where major arteries pass or numerous blood vessels branch out.

The neck contains the carotid arteries and vertebral arteries that transport blood to the brain. Keeping the neck warm where these two arteries pass helps maintain body temperature. Just as placing an ice pack on the neck cools you in summer, in winter, it is important to wrap a scarf around the neck to block the cold air. Especially in winter, it is better to keep the front part of the neck, where the carotid arteries are located, warm rather than the back.

The feet are not the end of the blood flow but a place where circulation occurs. Important arteries and other blood vessels are intertwined like a spider web. [Image captured from YouTube screen]

To stay warm in winter, you actually need to keep your feet warmer than your neck. Feet tend to be neglected compared to other body parts. The blood vessels in the feet maintain the temperature, skin, and nails of the feet and supply nutrients to the tissues. The pulse points in the feet are the dorsalis pedis artery located in the center of the top of the foot and the posterior tibial artery located just in front of the Achilles tendon on the inside of the ankle.

Arteries have relatively larger diameters and higher blood pressure than other vessels, so more blood flows through them. The greater the blood volume, the greater the influence on body temperature. Therefore, when the temperature of the feet rises, body temperature also rises. This means protecting these two arteries (dorsalis pedis artery and posterior tibial artery) in the feet is very important.

Ultimately, the key point is maintaining body temperature. The colder the weather, the more effort is needed to maintain body temperature. When body temperature drops, immunity also decreases, making the body vulnerable to various diseases. In the cold winter, wearing a scarf and thick socks is the simplest yet most important action to protect your health throughout the season.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.