Dec 6, 2025 2 min read

“Weather” you like it or not, the cold is here, and if this past week was a harbinger of things to come, we’ll be bundling up a lot.

With the chilly temps (this week, some days will be in the single digits or teens) and snow come health risks for many.

During last year’s cold snap, Dr. Sundeep Ekbote, regional chief medical officer and regional chief of emergency medicine for Penn Highlands Southwest, warned readers of the potential for frostbite and hypothermia.

The former causes injury to body tissue and most commonly affects the nose, fingers and toes. The latter is characterized by a steep drop in body temperature that could result in death.

There’s also a risk to the heart.

The American Heart Association noted cold weather activities like shoveling snow raise the risk of a heart attack, especially for those who have cardiovascular disease.

In a 2024 interview with the newspaper, Ekbote said two minutes of shoveling snow can make someone’s heart rate jump to 85% of its maximum capacity.

He called it “an unsupervised stress test.”

Over the years our reporters have asked many different doctors to give us their best cold-weather advice. The answer has been the same: Stay inside if you can.

And if that’s not an option, bundle up in layers and limit your time outside as much as possible.

Of course, there are many workers who don’t have an option. Delivery drivers have to get in and out of their vehicles and many postal workers have to walk their route.

When you see them coming, offer an extra thanks (and maybe a hot cup of cocoa).

We’d be remiss if we didn’t remind dog owners to pay extra attention to their furry friends. Under Pennsylvania law, when the temperature is lower than 32 degrees, dogs cannot be tied out for more than 30 minutes.

Those who violate the law, put in place in 2017, risk misdemeanor charges or summary citations.

So, whether it’s man, or man’s best friend, remember that this weather is “snow” joke. Stay inside and take it “ice” and easy.