If you spend time outdoors, serve in the military, public service, or have ever neglected your feet, you know how bad things can potentially get. We’ve all see the pictures of destroyed and frostbitten feet from climbers in the Himalaya. Those images of foot injuries are at their worst with lost toes and even amputations up to the knees. If you’ve never seen it, Google “trench foot” and you’ll know it is something you never want to endure.
For the men in the trenches of “No man’s land” or the jungles of the South Pacific, keeping their feet dry and warm was almost an impossibility. Today, we have all manner of luxury and new high-tech gear to keep our feet healthy. These benefits sometimes cause laziness and disregard for certain measures we can take to ensure a trip to the mountains doesn’t turn into a trip to the hospital. Even if it never gets that bad, no one, and I repeat no one likes the “screaming barfies.”
Hands and feet are the first to lose heat do to the body’s physiological response in cold weather. The human body is constantly working to keep a level of homeostasis, but it does have an order of precedence for which organs are of most and least concern. The skin is the body’s largest organ and the one that gets the brunt of blood shunting to keep the rest of your body alive. To keep the core of your body warm, the autonomic nervous system will cause capillary beds in the skin to constrict and thus shunt more blood to the core of the body. Boom, cold hands and feet.
You've reached your daily free article limit.
Subscribe and support our veteran writing staff to continue reading.
If you spend time outdoors, serve in the military, public service, or have ever neglected your feet, you know how bad things can potentially get. We’ve all see the pictures of destroyed and frostbitten feet from climbers in the Himalaya. Those images of foot injuries are at their worst with lost toes and even amputations up to the knees. If you’ve never seen it, Google “trench foot” and you’ll know it is something you never want to endure.
For the men in the trenches of “No man’s land” or the jungles of the South Pacific, keeping their feet dry and warm was almost an impossibility. Today, we have all manner of luxury and new high-tech gear to keep our feet healthy. These benefits sometimes cause laziness and disregard for certain measures we can take to ensure a trip to the mountains doesn’t turn into a trip to the hospital. Even if it never gets that bad, no one, and I repeat no one likes the “screaming barfies.”
Hands and feet are the first to lose heat do to the body’s physiological response in cold weather. The human body is constantly working to keep a level of homeostasis, but it does have an order of precedence for which organs are of most and least concern. The skin is the body’s largest organ and the one that gets the brunt of blood shunting to keep the rest of your body alive. To keep the core of your body warm, the autonomic nervous system will cause capillary beds in the skin to constrict and thus shunt more blood to the core of the body. Boom, cold hands and feet.
First, let’s cover some common problems/injuries caused by cold and wet weather. Then we will discuss some solutions and gear choices to keep your feet health and happy.
Common Cold Injuries are exacerbated by wet and moist conditions – water cools more effectively than air at the same temperature. Think of water and sweat as a heat sink.
Frostnip:
This is when things go numb. This is also that time when you will most likely endure the “screaming barfies.” Frostnip comes before frostbite and will not produce any longterm damage to the tissue or nerves. Once this kicks in, it is important to rewarm the area. Although it may be painful, doing nothing can lead to frostbite and possible permanent tissue damage. Above all, it is just down right uncomfortable. In combination, I’ve felt this extremity affliction more times than I can count and it was usually do to being unprepared.
Frostbite:
Frostbite, similar to burns, is classified in multiple degrees of severity. Going into great depth of each degree of severity is not within the scope of this article, but we will cover a short description of each. It is unlikely most individuals will ever be exposed long enough to endure a cold injury requiring the removal of dead tissue. Before understanding the severity, it is important to know and be able to reference the different layers of the skin.
Along with all of these degrees of frostbite is edema. Edema is when localized tissue contains an excessive amount of fluid. Through a non homeostatic process, fluid is moved from inside the cell to the space between each cell, known as interstitial space. You can test for edema by pushing into the skin with your finger. Pitting is designated by barely impressionable to over 30 seconds before the skin rebounds to normal.
Trench Foot
Trench foot is also known as immersion foot and is a nonfreezing cold injury (NFCI). Trench or immersion foot does not require continuous immersion in water, but only a continuously moist environment between 35 and 65 degrees fahrenheit. This becomes pretty easy when soldiers or backcountry adventurers don’t manage their feet. The colder the temperature, the more likely NFCI will have long-term and lasting effects.
How do I keep healthy dogs?
Most individuals will never endure one of the above cases, but will have moments of severe discomfort that will hopefully make them reexamine foot care. Below are a few steps and pieces of gear I recommend over my years of wincing.
Overall, keeping your feet dry makes it much easier to keep them warm. Investing is footwear that is warm, waterproof, and fits well, is much more important than some fancy gadget. If you are on a budget, wait until last seasons models go on sale. Know the signs of frostnip, frostbite, and NFCI for yourself and anyone traveling in your party. Take a page from the military medics and perform foot checks on each other at least once a day. Now, go have an adventure and keep your feet warm and dry.
If you have some magical tips for keeping your feet warm and dry, including gear selection, tell us about it in the comments below or on Facebook.
This article is courtesy of Isaiah Burkhart from The Loadout Room.
Join SOFREP for insider access and analysis.
TRY 14 DAYS FREEAlready a subscriber? Log In
COMMENTS
You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article.