Staying warm in cold weather is healthy and important.

By stacy kess
Evening News health editor

When the weather outside gets frightful, staying warm is so delightful.

And it’s healthy.

Wearing a warm coat, plenty of layers, a scarf, a hat, gloves, warm socks and boots won’t just make you look prepped for winter, these items will also stop your body from losing heat. If the air around your body is cold, your body temperature will begin to cool. That’s when you start shivering and your teeth start chattering. It’s your body’s way of trying to stay warm.

As you get colder, your blood vessels get smaller. Less blood reaches your fingers and toes so other parts of your body get the most blood and stay warm. Then, your body’s metabolism – that’s the process of making energy – slows down to make sure there’s enough fresh blood and oxygen to do the most important things.

If your body gets too cold, it enters a state of hypothermia – a body temperature that is too low. And that can be dangerous.

While building snowmen in the winter snows, Jack Frost is nipping at your nose.

When your nose, ears, cheeks, chin, fingers and toes get nipped too much, they can get frostbite – a freezing of the skin. Ice crystals actually form in your skin and can cause damage if it’s not taken care of properly.

Frostbitten skin feels numb and sort of waxy, and it’s probably white or grayish-yellow.

Want to warm up? Try:

Using your own body heat to warm it up. For instance, if you fingers are frostbitten, put them in your armpit where it’s warm. Don’t rub or massage the frostbitten area, because that can cause damage.

Try soaking your frostbitten toes in warm water, but make sure the water isn’t hot.

Wrap up in a blanket in a warm room, but avoid using the heat from a lamp or lightbulb, a heating pad, a stove or a fire because your frostbitten skin is numb and may burn.

Ready to walk in a winter wonderland?

Don’t forget your hat – or your gloves and scarf.

You body loses heat through the skin, so any part of your body not covered will let some of your warmth escape. Although your head may not be the spot that loses the most heat on your body, it can be if it’s the only part of your body you don’t cover.

Think about it this way: If your whole body is exposed, your head will probably let less heat escape than your back or even your arm. But often, heads are left uncovered while the rest of the body is layered with warm clothes. The result? About half your heat loss is through your head.

Your average body temperature is 98.6° to 99° Fahrenheit.