SurvivalMedicineBlog

Hypothermia: what it is

Not medical advice. This is an archive article for general information when professional care is hard to reach. It is not a diagnosis, treatment, or cure. Read the disclaimer. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.

Hypothermia is a drop in body temperature that happens when someone loses heat faster than their body replaces it. Wind, wet clothes, and cold water speed it up. Older adults, infants, and people who have been still in the cold for a long time are at higher risk. It is a medical emergency, including when the person is indoors without heat.

What it can look like

• Shivering, clumsiness, and slurred speech
• Confusion, drowsiness, or unusual quietness
• In severe cases, shivering can stop, and the person may be hard to wake
• An infant may have cold skin and very low energy and may not shiver the way an adult does

While you get help

Call your local emergency number. Move the person out of the wind and wet if you can do that safely. Replace wet clothes with dry layers and cover the head. Give a warm, sweet drink only if the person is fully awake and able to swallow. Do not give alcohol. Do not rub the arms and legs. Do not put the person in a hot bath. Warming someone who is severely cold needs medical care, because doing it wrong can cause more harm.

This page used to repeat a clinic website's article and pointed at an image on another blog. Both are gone. The signs above are general education so you recognize an emergency. They are not a diagnosis.