Getting Ready For Winter Fun
By Patrick McGuire
Consultant to the VIRTUS® Programs
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As this article is being written, the thermometer on the other side of the window stubbornly refuses to rise above twenty degrees even though the sun is shining brightly and the sky is a crystal blue. Frankly, it looks a whole lot nicer than it feels—to adults that is.
For a number of reasons—not the least of which is preserving the sanity of parents coexisting in a closed environment with children who possess energy levels rivaling nuclear explosions—children will go (or be sent) outside to play. And if more of that fluffy white stuff silently appeared overnight like some kind of frozen manna (at least that’s how the kids see it, especially if it closed the schools), you probably couldn’t keep them inside no matter how hard you tried.
However, as fun as winter can be, it offers unique challenges to safety that need to be considered, and as with other safe environments concerns, even the obvious tips benefit from an annual review of what is helpful and why. So, let’s start getting our children ready to rock the winter wonderland safely.
Anyone who remembers a childhood that involved adventures in the cold likely has fond memories of coming home to steaming mugs of hot chocolate with marshmallows bobbing temptingly daring you to get at them without a spoon. But hearty snacks can be even more useful before kids start piling on layers. As warm-blooded mammals, human beings use calories to keep themselves warm, and the colder the temperature the more calories we burn. So a nice little carb-heavy snack will not only add to the memories of childhood winters one day, but provide easy fuel for their little metabolisms as they endlessly drag their snowboards up the hill. And, because a child’s metabolism runs high, an energy bar or some trail mix can keep them going until they victoriously return home for a hearty meal.
So the fires are stoked. It’s time to gear up. At some point in life, we’ve all “dress in layers” for the first time, and it’s excellent advice. But now for some details: when deciding what to wear, it bears remembering that snow always melts. So whatever the kids have on is going to get wet. Hence, cotton is bad. It can hold several times it weight in water and literally sucks the warmth right out of you. So get a good feel for the temperature and start picking layers; start with lighter materials that wick sweat away from the body, work your way up to heavier materials that help keep water out. When children get hot layers can come off as necessary to avoid becoming overheated . Boots should be waterproof if possible, and a good fit helps to prevent missteps in the shifting snow.
At some point though, you have to cut the kids loose. So make sure they know the basics of how to handle the cold. Tell them to stay as dry as possible (realizing of course that that is no fun at all). Warn them that they can get too warm even in winter. If this happens, an easy way to cool down is to take off your hat for a few minutes. We lose over 80 percent of our body heat through the top of our head which makes it the perfect pressure valve to blow off steam. The actual temperature will dictate how long to leave the hat off, but they will likely put it back on as soon as their head feels cold again. Scarves and gloves/mittens can be used in the same way to avoid overheating.
And finally, as in so many things, tell them to keep an eye out for each other. It is not difficult to tell when someone is way too cold. People who need to get warm right away can be shivering uncontrollably (likewise with chattering teeth); they can start to feel very tired; noses and lips can get very pale (nearly white in fact); hands and feet can become uncomfortably cold as the body naturally redirects blood flow to the chest and head; or they can start moving more slowly (it looks like they are VERY weary or exhausted). Any of these are signs that your warm-blooded body has had enough for now. Time for cocoa.
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