Beat the cold this winter
Alyssa Follett calls this weather, “horrible!”
The third year Digital Communications student at the University of Guelph-Humber relies on public transportation to get her to school.
Follett says that she waits for the bus from anywhere between two to 10 minutes. To prepare for the cold wait, Follett covers herself from head to toe with winter clothing.
“I wear my winter coat, a hat, scarf, mittens, my fleeced lined leggings and boots. I invest in good items,” she said.
Regardless of all this winter clothing, Follett still stays cold.
“I get cold really easily and waiting a long time for the bus sometimes doesn’t help.”
She sometimes wonders if going to school is worth waiting in the cold.
“There have been times where I debated just going back home or calling a taxi [to go to school] because I was that freezing,” said Follett.
She even believes that she may have got sick because of waiting outside in the cold.
“My face and legs get cold the most when I am outside. I have probably gotten sick at some point because of it,” she said.
But is the cold weather fully to blame whenever you get sick at this time of year?
Sandra Secord, Professor of the nursing program at Humber College says that there are two peak times in the school when the most students get sick. The first peak is midterm or final exam time and the second is in January when the cold weather starts.
“I think it’s like the perfect storm that occurs at these two times of year. It’s when people are stressed and less than perfect conditions that people are living in that makes them sick,” Secord said.
She continued to say that getting sick is a result of multiple things like stress, lack of sleep and not being prepared for the cold weather that make people succumb to viruses.
It is preventable however as Secord explained, especially if you are trying to block yourself from the cold weather.
“Dressing for the weather is really important. The more your body has to fight to keep warm, the less energy it has to fight off organisms that may be potentially threatening to you.”
Having proper head protection is key in this cold weather because it can prevent you from getting what Secord called external ear infections that can be very uncomfortable.
Secord noted that it doesn’t matter if you are commuting by bus, car or simply walking across the parking lot, you have to dress according to weather conditions.
Emma Switzer, Outreach Coordinator Assistant at Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) in Toronto, says too often students aren’t properly prepared.
She says there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad equipment.
“Even if it is negative 20 weather and it’s miserable, if you layer properly you’re still going to be warm enough.”
Layering, as Switzer puts it is the easiest way to stay warm.
“Having a good base layer makes a big difference. Finding wool long johns to wear under your pants can be very effective because it acts as a wind barrier and is a good way to trap body heat,” she said.
Switzer goes on to say that layering is also important because it allows you to be warm outside but not over-heat inside.
Along with layering, moving around is also another effective way to keep warm, especially if you are waiting for a bus.
“The best way to stay warm is to keep moving. When you are at a bus stop and sitting down on a bench, that’s when you get really cold because you don’t have a lot of circulation going on in your body,” Switzer said.
Switzer said that wiggling your toes or jumping up and down are two ways of getting circulation going throughout your body.
The next time you think about skipping class because it is too cold out she says to remember that layering, dressing warm and moving around can help you make it through the bitter cold.
About the Author
Jessica Cecchin Third year Media Studies student at the University of Guelph- Humber. I am looking to go into radio broadcasting after graduating from university.
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