Core Tip: The Minor Cold has passed, but the Major Cold has not yet arrived. It's the end of the year and before the holidays, a time when daily winter routines require the most attention to health. So, how can you maintain a healthy lifestyle?
Three Health Care Methods
Teeth Cleaning with Lukewarm Water Medical experts' surveys on dental ecology show that human teeth can perform normal metabolism at an oral temperature of 35-36.5°C. If teeth are frequently subjected to sudden cold and hot stimuli, it can cause long-term issues like dental pulp bleeding and spasms, and even lead to periodontitis and gingivitis. Therefore, rinsing with lukewarm water at around 35°C is beneficial for dental health, helps remove food debris and bacteria from between teeth, and achieves the goal of protecting teeth, cleaning them, and reducing oral diseases.
Washing Face with Cold Water In winter, facial skin's capillaries constrict due to the low temperature. Washing your face with hot water may feel warm at the moment, but once the heat dissipates, the capillaries return to their original state. This repeated expansion and constriction can easily lead to wrinkles on facial skin. Washing your face with cold water in the morning, on the other hand, instantly refreshes you. The stimulation from cold water can improve facial blood circulation and enhance skin elasticity. Its health benefits in winter also include: enhancing the body's cold resistance, preventing colds and rhinitis, and being beneficial for those with neurasthenia and neurogenic headaches. Of course, the water temperature should not be too low, with a temperature slightly above 10°C being appropriate.
Foot Soaking in Hot Water Soaking your feet in hot water at 55-70°C before bed can relieve fatigue and help with sleep. The human foot has many acupoints. Soaking in hot water relaxes muscles and tendons, accelerates blood circulation, and has the effect of preventing and treating diseases, especially for patients with chilblains and varicose veins in the feet.
Three Areas to Keep Warm in Winter
Head Warmth When the head is exposed to cold stimulation, blood vessels constrict and head muscles tense, which can easily lead to headaches, colds, and even cause gastrointestinal discomfort.
Back Warmth Cold stimulation can affect local muscles or be transmitted to internal organs through acupoints on the back, harming health. Besides causing back pain, a cold back can also affect the muscles and joints of the limbs and internal organs through the cervical and lumbar spine, triggering various discomforts.
Foot Warmth Once the feet get cold, it can reflexively cause capillaries in the upper respiratory tract mucous membrane to constrict and slow down ciliary movement, reducing resistance. The consequence is that viruses and bacteria take advantage, multiply in large numbers, and cause a person to catch a cold.
Preventing Scalds in Winter
Scalds from Washing In cold weather, the surface blood vessels of the exposed face and hands constrict, and the temperature is low, especially right after coming in from outdoors. If you suddenly use hot water to wash at this time, the heat cannot be absorbed by the blood in time, making it easy to get scalded. This can ultimately induce chilblains due to poor blood circulation in the scalded skin.
Scalds from Bedding Patients with hemiplegia, paraplegia, senile dementia, and the elderly are prone to scalds. Their skin sensation is dull, and they may not be able to pull away from the heat. Therefore, when using hot water bottles or electric heating pads, the temperature must be controlled. Family members should pay close attention and observe any changes in their skin.
Scalds from Heaters The metal surfaces of heaters such as electric stoves and oil heaters get very hot during use. The elderly and young children move slowly and can easily get scalded when they touch them with their hands and feet. Family members must provide extra supervision and pay attention to safety.