Risks for Your Feet When Working in Cold Weathers

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Last Updated on February 23, 2024 by Joe Strong

It seems that the only bad thing that can happen to you when working exposed to low temperature is only getting a little bit cold. But that’s not completely true as there’re several risks for your feet when working in cold weathers.

Let’s go over them.

1) Paralyzing Cold

Do you like performing bad at your work?

Well, that’s what’s gonna happen if you let the risks for your feet when working in cold weathers get better of you.

As it turns out, certain areas of your body–like your ears, feet, nose, fingers, and toes–don’t contain any major muscles and because of that, blood doesn’t flow as easily to these areas.

While this doesn’t appear to be a problem most of the time, in really cold temperatures, these essential body parts end up getting colder a lot faster than others and the end result isn’t just cold–it’s paralyzingly cold.

2) Trenchfoot and Frostbites

In the cold, the human body is programmed to prioritize keeping vital organs warm.

Unfortunately, this survival method means that less blood flows to the extremities–like the feet–and these areas can’t stay warm as long and get colder more quickly–which can lead to serious problems such as..

a) Trenchfoot

Contracting trench foot usually results from poor blood supply after working or being out in both cold and wet conditions.

Although the early stages of trench foot are fairly easy to deal with, it can advance to necrosis–or tissue death–which radiates a decaying odor and is quite a bit harder to treat.

b) Frostbite

When people think of the risks of being out in the cold, one of the first things they usually name is frostbite.

What is it exactly, though? Frostbite is essentially an injury that’s caused by the freezing of the skin and the tissues underneath it.

It goes through a few different stages: first, your skin becomes cold and turns red until eventually your skin loses color and becomes hard and numb.

3) Injuries and Falls

Risks for Your Feet in Cold Working Conditions

It’s a little-known fact that cold weather also comes with slippery surfaces.

These slick surfaces are just a little too easy to fall on, and when you do slip and injure yourself, you’re probably going to have some pain–depending on the extent of this injury.

Even if you are lucky and all you get is a little sore, you’re probably still going to have a lower performance at work because of it.

4) Getting Sick

If you’re like me, you hate getting sick.

Well, the truth is that in winter, things are pretty nasty and the risk of catching a cold or getting sick rises–whether or not you work out in cold temperatures or not.

The thing about working in cold temperatures, however, is that if one part of your body gets chilly–like your feet–your chance of getting sick increases quite a bit and let’s be honest–being sick is just extremely annoying.

5) Pain When Walking

Walking in winter is tough, no matter what surface you walk on, things will get pretty bad for your feet.

If there’s no cushioning or shock absorbing mechanisms in your footwear, you could definitely experience some aches and pains.

After a couple of days of having to walk on tough surfaces or through winter conditions, this constant soreness and pain can get unbearable and make it much harder to do your job!

Author: Joe Strong

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