Heart attack risk 'doubles' during cold winter weather, doctor warns
29.10.2023 - 17:01
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
Staying warm in the winter is important to your health, with the cold increasing your risk of various conditions. The cold poses particular danger to elderly people as well as those living with chronic medical conditions.
Excess deaths caused by the cold set in when temperatures dip below 12C, warned Dr Deborah Lee, of Dr Fox Online Pharmacy, with more people across the UK dying from cold related conditions compared to countries such as Finland, Norway and Denmark.
She said: “A cold spell doesn’t just affect you on the day – the effect can be felt up to a couple of weeks afterwards. During cold weather, the risk of a stroke or a heart attack doubles.”
The doctor explained that this is due to your body's attempt to keep its core temperature up. To do this, the body diverts blood away from the peripheries – fingers and toes – so these blood vessels become constricted, as writes the Express.
The heart is then required to pump harder in order to push blood through narrowed blood vessels.
While this is not a problem for healthy people, those who already have atherosclerosis in their coronary arteries, may see their risk of an attack of angina or even a heart attack increased by the cooler temperatures.
The expert added that the cold weather can also make blood thicker and stickier, meaning it is more likely to clot.
According to researchers, as temperatures drop, so does blood pressure and vitamin D levels, with cholesterol levels rising.
Dr Lee advised: “You can help protect yourself from heart disease in the winter by keeping your home heated to at least 18C, keeping active, having warm drinks and warm food, and wrapping a scarf around your mouth and nose when you go outside so you are breathing in warm air. The NHS recommends