Many enjoy the cold weather of winter, especially with snow on the ground.

But extreme cold can be dangerous for people, and can cause harm in a few different ways. Frostbite is something many know about and watch out for, but hypothermia can be just as bad, or worse. Adair and Guthrie County Emergency Management Coordinator Bob Kempf tells Raccoon Valley Radio hypothermia is when someone’s core body temperature becomes too low. He talks about a good way to help protect yourself from hypothermia.

“You want to wear several lighter layers, so that you have layers to protect you from that and keep the weather from carrying that heat away from your body and stuff like that.”

Kempf points out just like frostbite, individuals might not notice they have hypothermia until after the fact. He advises if it’s suspected that someone could be suffering from hypothermia, get them wrapped up in a blanket. Kempf adds, the body’s main defense against cold is shivering, and hypothermia shuts that defense down, so heat needs to be trapped to get the body warmed back up. Kempf recommends if the hypothermia is severe enough the individual should seek medical attention, because hypothermia affects internal organs, especially the heart, very heavily.