January 23 : Keeping frostbite at bay  

When you're outside enjoying winter activities, such as skiing, sledding or skating, remember to dress appropriately to protect yourself against frostbite.

Frostbite occurs when the body's survival mechanisms take over during extremely cold weather. The body moves to protect the vital inner organs, which it does by cutting back on circulation to your extremities, such as your fingers, toes, ears and nose. Your risk of frostbite also increases if you take certain medications for heart conditions or if you have circulatory problems, such as narrowing of the arteries.

The first sign of frostbite is usually a slightly painful, tingling sensation, which is often followed by numbness. Skin that's frostbitten may be pale in colour, cold and hard to the touch.

Here's some advice on how to deal with frostbite :

• As soon as possible, gradually warm the areas affected by frostbite. If you're outside, you can warm frostbitten hands by tucking them under your armpits. Use a dry, gloved hand to cover and warm frostbite on your face, nose or ears. Don't rub areas affected by frostbite and never rub snow on frostbitten skin.
• Get out of the cold as soon as you can. Once you're indoors, place frostbitten hands or feet in water slightly warmer than normal body temperature —37 to 40°Celsius. Never apply direct heat to an area that has been affected by frostbite.
• As your skin thaws, it should turn red and you should feel a tingling and burning sensation as the skin warms. This means that blood circulation is returning to the area. If the skin remains numb or you experience sustained pain while warming the skin, you should seek emergency medical care.

For more information about frostbite, visit HealthyOntario.com.

In recognition of Weedless Wednesday, the McGuinty government challenged all Ontario smokers to kick the habit and laid out its plan to help them quit.

"When you're young, it's hard to imagine that smoking a cigarette today can leave you with cancer and heart disease tomorrow,” said Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman. "The cold hard fact is that approximately half of all smokers die from a smoking-related illness, one every 12 minutes.”

"Our government has an aggressive plan to address the number one killer in Ontario by reducing second hand smoke, helping smokers to quit, and preventing young people from starting,” Smitherman added.

The McGuinty government's plan builds on Ontario's $10M Tobacco Strategy, involving comprehensive initiatives to reduce tobacco use across the province, such as support for the Smokers' Helpline. To achieve its pledge to make Ontario smoke-free, the McGuinty government has :

• Increased taxes on cigarettes by $2.50 a carton and committed to making ongoing increases to meet the national average;
• Committed to making all workplaces and public spaces 100% smoke-free within three years;
• Committed to a campaign to enable youth to help other youth quit smoking;
• Committed to tougher controls on tobacco advertising in public and retail spaces.

Quitting smoking may be difficult, but it can be done and there are many ways to make quitting easier. According to the Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey (CTUMS), more than half of Canadians who tried to quit smoking in 2002 were successful and many people do succeed in quitting for life.

"Just imagine, within a few hours of quitting, your risk of having a stroke drops significantly, by about 40%,” said Smitherman.

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