Care of the elderly in cold weather – Key and notes
Hypothermia in the 1 elderly
Frail, infirm 2 and elderly people are at risk from 3 hypothermia if the weather is very cold 4. They often 5 have inadequate6 food or heating, and are more likely 7 than younger people to suffer from conditions such as arthritis 8, making them relatively immobile 9 and at greater risk.
Vocabulary: hypothermia – the condition of having an abnormally low (typically dangerously low) body temperature. Did you write hypo (under, below) and not hyper (above, beyond, excessive) – it sounds almost identical? Hyperthermia is the opposite of hypothermia, but the phrase ‘if the weather is very cold’ gave you a clue!
Sometimes if a person is very energetic or active we describe him / her as ‘a bit hyper‘, short for hyperactive. It is not the actual medical condition of hyperactivity. Another similar word which is misused is ‘depressed‘ when someone is ‘down‘ – again, not at all the same thing as genuine depression.
Elderly is used in the UK in preference to ‘old’, as it does not have the same negative connotations as ‘old’ can sometimes have.
When we talk of a group of people we often say ‘in‘ – eg hayfever in young children, loneliness in students
frail – adjective – weak or unhealthy, or easily damaged, broken or harmed. Eg a frail young man, a frail economy
infirm – adjective FORMAL – ill or needing care, especially for long periods and often because of old age
Punctuation: Did you remember that in a list you need a comma unless the word precedes ‘and’ or ‘but’? Frail, infirm and elderly people
Grammar: Normally someone is or is put at risk from sth Notice we suffer from sth
such as = like
Pronunciation: often is sometimes pronounced as here, without sounding the ‘t’
If something is likely it may well happen
Spelling: immobile – did you think of the double ‘m‘?
As the body ages 10, it loses its sensitivity to cold 11, so the elderly may not feel a drop in temperature 12. In addition 13, an elderly person’s body 14 is less able to compensate for 15 an extreme 16 temperature change.
Did you notice ‘age‘ as a verb in ‘ages‘?
Punctuation: its – meaning of it. (It’s means ‘it is’). Similarly, a person’s body = the body of a person
Grammar : You are sensitive to sth
To compensate for – to make up for, to react by replacing sth; also to pay someone money in exchange for something that has been lost or damaged or for some inconvenience
Eg Workers wanted to be compensated for their loss of earnings.
Hypothermia in the home may develop 17 slowly, and warming should also be gradual 18. Rapid warming could send cold blood to the heart and brain 19 too suddenly 20. Always call a doctor, because this type of hypothermia may disguise 21 the symptoms 22 of, or accompany 23a stroke 24 or a heart attack 25.
Spellings: develop is often misspelt;
Did you realise gradual has only one ‘l‘? You have probably come across gradually more often.
disguise and symptoms are tricky spellings for speakers of some languages
Note: We often use ‘the‘ when talking of medical conditions. Hold the arm still – it avoids having to write or say ‘the person’s arm’