As temperatures drop, cold weather can have a significant impact on health, affecting everyone from outdoor enthusiasts to commuters. Understanding how frigid conditions affect your body is essential for preventing serious health complications during the winter months in Great Falls, MT. While many people associate cold weather with minor discomforts like chapped lips or dry skin, the reality is that exposure to low temperatures can lead to life-threatening conditions that require immediate medical attention.
Recognize How Your Body Fights the Cold
When exposed to the cold, your body initiates a sophisticated defense mechanism to maintain its core temperature at approximately 98.6°F. Blood vessels in the extremities constrict, redirecting warm blood to vital organs like the heart, lungs, and brain. While this vasoconstriction protects essential functions, it leaves your fingers, toes, ears, and nose vulnerable to cold-related injuries.
Your body also generates heat through shivering, which increases metabolic activity. However, this defense system has limits. Prolonged exposure, inadequate clothing, or wet conditions can overwhelm these protective mechanisms, leading to serious health consequences ranging from mild discomfort to fatal outcomes.1
Protect Yourself from Life-Threatening Cold Weather Conditions
Boost Your Immune Defenses During Winter
Increased illness susceptibility occurs because cold weather forces people indoors, where viruses spread more easily, while cold air weakens immune defenses in the respiratory tract. The combination of dry indoor heating and cold outdoor air creates optimal conditions for respiratory infections. Prevention includes frequent handwashing, maintaining indoor humidity levels, getting vaccinated against flu and pneumonia, and supporting immune function through adequate sleep and nutrition.2
Keep Your Airways Clear in Frigid Temperatures
Respiratory problems worsen in cold weather as frigid air irritates airways, triggering bronchospasm and increased mucus production. Cold temperatures constrict airways, making breathing difficult for those with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or bronchitis.
- Symptoms: wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath.
- Risk factors: pre-existing respiratory conditions, smoking, and exposure to air pollution.
Treatment includes using prescribed inhalers before outdoor exposure, wearing scarves over the mouth to warm inhaled air, and consulting healthcare providers about adjusting medications during the winter months.3
Guard Your Heart Against Cold Weather Stress
Cardiovascular strain increases significantly in cold weather as blood vessels constrict and blood pressure rises. The heart must work harder to pump blood through narrowed vessels, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Cold air also triggers arterial spasms and increases blood clotting.
- Symptoms: chest pain, shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, and fatigue.
- Risk factors: existing heart conditions, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and sedentary lifestyles.
Treatment involves limiting outdoor exposure during extreme cold, warming up gradually before strenuous activity, and seeking immediate medical care for chest pain or cardiac symptoms.4
Stop Hypothermia Before It Starts
Hypothermia occurs when core body temperature drops below 95°F.
- Symptoms: intense shivering, numbness, confusion, slurred speech, and loss of coordination. As it progresses, shivering stops and consciousness fades.
- At risk: elderly individuals, infants, those with chronic illnesses, and anyone in wet clothing.
Treatment involves gradually rewarming, removing wet clothing, providing warm beverages if the person is conscious, and seeking immediate emergency care for severe cases.5
Prevent Frostbite Damage to Your Extremities
Frostbite freezes skin and underlying tissues, typically affecting fingers, toes, nose, and ears.
- Symptoms: numbness, tingling, pale or waxy-looking skin, and, in severe cases, hard, blistered areas that turn black.
- Risk factors: inadequate clothing, tight footwear, smoking, and conditions like diabetes.
Treatment requires moving to a warm place, avoiding rubbing frozen tissue, gradually rewarming in warm water, and seeking medical attention for severe cases.6
Understanding these cold-weather health risks empowers individuals to take preventive measures, recognize early warning signs, and respond appropriately to protect themselves and others during the winter months. If you experience symptoms of cold-related illness or injury, prompt medical attention is essential.
Walk-In Care in Great Falls, MT
For minor cold-related concerns, the Great Falls Clinic provides comprehensive Walk-In Care services at our Specialty Center and Northwest Clinic. We offer two Walk-In Care locations to serve you without an appointment, seven days a week, with short wait times and extended hours that accommodate busy lives. Our Walk-In departments offer general medical care for a wide range of illnesses and minor injuries, with X-ray, lab testing, vaccines, and sports physicals available on-site.
Severe cold exposure can be life-threatening. Go to the emergency room immediately if you experience: confusion or drowsiness, slurred speech, loss of consciousness, severe shivering that suddenly stops, difficulty breathing, chest pain, or frostbite affecting large areas of the body. The Great Falls Clinic Hospital Emergency Department is located at 3010 15th Avenue South at the rear entrance of Great Falls Clinic Hospital.
Ready to schedule an appointment? Don’t let cold weather complications go untreated—visit us for expert care when you need it most. Be sure to discuss any cold-weather health concerns with your primary care provider. If you do not have a primary care provider, we have providers available—call to schedule an appointment at (406) 205-1915.
For immediate cold-weather assistance: Visit one of our Walk-In Care locations by calling (406) 454-7200 or online at https://gfclinic.com/department/walk-in-care-immediate-care-center/.
For severe cold-weather symptoms: Our Emergency Department is available 24/7. Call (406) 216-8082 or visit https://gfclinic.com/great-falls-clinic-emergency-care-services/.
Sources:
- (2024). Body Temperature Regulation Neuroscience. Michigan State University. https://www.justintimemedicine.com/curriculum/6935
- (2023). Boost Your Immunity for Winter: Lifestyle Tips and Essential Nutrients. Bastyr University. https://bastyr.edu/about/news/boost-your-immunity-winter-lifestyle-tips-and-essential-nutrients#:~:text=Regular%20exercise%20helps%20enhance%20immune,walking%2C%20jogging%2C%20or%20dancing.&text=Support%20your%20mucosal%20barriers%20by,potatoes%2C%20carrots%2C%20and%20spinach.&text=Boost%20your%20immune%20cells%20with,to%20a%20resilient%20immune%20system.&text=Ensure%20adequate%20levels%20of%20vitamin,there%20are%20limited%20food%20sources.
- (2023). Is the extreme cold bad for your lungs? Mayo Clinic Health System. https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/is-the-extreme-cold-bad-for-your-lungs
- (2024). Cold Weather Exposure Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Attacks. American College of Cardiology. https://www.acc.org/About-ACC/Press-Releases/2024/09/02/10/31/Cold-Weather-Exposure
- (2025). Cold Weather-Related Health and Safety Tips (Hypothermia). Wisconsin Department of Health Services. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/climate/cold.htm
- Basit, H. (2023). Frostbite. Stat Pearls. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536914/