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Article: Hypothermia occurs when body temperature drops below 95 degrees, doctor says. (Originated from Knight-Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- February 16, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Hypothermia occurs when body temperature drops below 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Because water conducts heat 30 times better than air, hypothermia can be a danger even in water in the low 70s.
``It doesn't take very long for that water to absorb the heat from your body and drop your body temperature,'' says Dr. Bernard Elser, medical director of the medical intensive care unit at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. ``It doesn't have to be icy cold, and it doesn't have to be that long.''
Any water below 98.6 degrees draws heat from the body. How long it takes for body temperature to drop dangerously low depends on the water temperature, your ...