VOA慢速英语2010年-Slow and Gentle Are Best in Treating H

We talked last week about ways to avoid cold-weather injuries. Today we are going to talk about emergency treatment of hypothermia.

Hypothermia can be mild, moderate or severe. Mild hypothermia is something that most people in cold climates have experienced at one time or another. You feel so cold that your body starts to shake -- not very much, but uncontrollably.

The treatment for mild hypothermia starts with getting out of the cold and, if necessary, changing into dry clothes. Drinking warm, non-alcoholic liquids and eating something sugary can stop the shivering.

Taking a warm bath or sitting by a fire or doing some exercise can also help the body warm up. These are all common-sense treatments.

But treatment needs to change when people enter the moderate or severe stages of hypothermia. In that situation, their body temperature drops below thirty-five degrees Celsius¹. They lose the ability to think clearly. Their muscles become stiff². They might bump³ into things or fall over objects.

Members of search-and-rescue teams will first try to prevent additional heat loss. They will place extra covering around the chest, head and neck of hypothermia victims to keep them warm.

Drinking a warm liquid or eating something sugary can help control shaking from mild hypothermia

Hypothermia victims need medical help as soon as possible. Working quickly to get people out of the cold is important. However, hypothermia victims must be moved slowly and gently.

Any rough or sudden movement can force cold blood from the arms, legs and hands deep into the warmer middle of the body. This sudden flow of cold blood can create shock, a serious condition. It can also cause an abnormal⁴ heartbeat.

Members of search-and-rescue teams have a saying that hypothermia victims are not dead until they are warm and dead. The process of "rewarming" a person needs to be done slowly, in a hospital setting.

An extremely low body temperature can cause the heart to beat so slowly that a pulse may be difficult to find. In other words, a person who is suffering from the effects of severe cold may seem dead, but still be alive.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver⁵. If you missed last week's advice about how to avoid cold-weather injuries, you can find it at voaspecialenglish.com.

We also invite you to share your stories of the coldest weather -- or the hottest weather -- you have ever experienced. You can share your stories on Facebook and Twitter at VOA Learning English. I’m Faith Lapidus.

1 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

2 stiff   

adj.严厉的，激烈的，硬的，僵直的，不灵活的

参考例句：

• There is a sheet of stiff cardboard in the drawer.在那个抽屉里有块硬纸板。
• You have to push on the handle to turn it,becanse it's very stiff.手柄很不灵活，你必须用力推才能转动它。

3 bump   

v.（against,into）碰，颠簸；n.碰撞，隆起物

参考例句：

• I heard a bump in the next room.我听到隔壁房间传来“砰”的一声。
• He got a bad bump on his forehead.他碰得前额隆起一个大包。

4 abnormal   

adj.反常的，不正常的，不规则的

参考例句：

• This warm weather is abnormal for February.二月里这种温暖的天气不太正常。
• That is simply abnormal.那简直是反常的。

5 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。