, Columnist
Winter Forecast: More Strokes
Cold snaps increase the incidence of strokes, but people and public health officials can fight back by doing more to manage blood pressure.
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It turns out a cold snap really is bad for your health, but not because the chill gives you a runny nose. The fallout is much worse. Just as Americans are digging out from a brutal winter, the news arrives that sudden drops in temperature increase the incidence of strokes.
This unexpected observation is another bizarre data point in the steady barrage of bewildering public health news that health-conscious people -- not to mention public health officials -- are asked to process. So let's digest this study before it provokes anyone to pack up and move out of reach of the next polar vortex.