Winter storm hits western US 0:44
(CNN) --
When winter storms force us to prepare for freezing rain, wind, sleet and snow, lives can be in danger.
The development of a "bomb cyclone" led to watches being issued for tens of millions of people from Washington state to Maryland, according to the National Weather Service.
A bomb cyclone is heading for the northeastern US between Friday and Saturday
The storm will affect much of the country, but the most severe effects will be from a blizzard in the Midwest on Thursday and Friday.
The National Weather Service also warns that wind chills in the Midwest can be life-threatening, with temperatures ranging from 115 to 125 degrees Fahrenheit.
About 40 million people are under a wind chill watch as far south as Alabama and Texas.
Babies and the elderly are most at risk of cold-related illness or injury, as they lose body heat more easily and the elderly tend to produce less body heat.
But there are steps you can take to protect yourself and others when extreme cold hits.
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Tips for being safe indoors
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers the following tips for staying indoors during cold temperatures or a winter storm:
Make sure that children under one year of age do not sleep in cold rooms and that they wear appropriate warm clothing, such as onesies, one-piece blankets or sleeping bags.
Remove any pillows or other soft bedding from the crib, as they pose a risk of suffocation or sudden infant death syndrome.
If you have friends or neighbors over the age of 65, visit them often to make sure their homes have adequate heating.
Leave water faucets slightly open to prevent frozen pipes.
Eat balanced foods to stay warm.
Avoid alcohol and caffeine, as they can cause your body to lose heat more quickly.
"Never use generators, gas or charcoal grills, camping stoves, or similar appliances inside your home, in basements, garages, or near windows," the CDC says.
"The fumes are deadly."
Using the stove for warmth is not safe, the CDC warns;
instead, use extra blankets, sleeping bags, or coats.
A working fireplace or space heater can be a safe alternative.
Tips for staying safe outdoors
The CDC and the National Weather Service offer some recommendations for venturing outdoors during a winter storm:
Bundle up with hats, scarves, and gloves, and wear several layers of clothing.
Avoid walking on ice and avoid getting wet.
If you have to shovel snow or do other outdoor work, take your time and work slowly.
If you have older neighbors, offer to help remove snow from their driveways.
If possible, avoid driving on icy roads.
If you are stranded outdoors, it is safest to stay in your vehicle.
Try to keep your pets sheltered when it's cold, but if they do go out, clean their paws well and remove the snow from the lower part of their belly when they come back inside.
Never leave your dog unleashed on snow or ice.
What happens to the body with the cold?
Many of us feel cold winter temperatures on our fingers and toes before any other part of our bodies.
This occurs because the body works to protect vital organs from the cold, Dr. Suzanne Salamon, associate chief of clinical programs at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, told CNN.
"Blood vessels in all parts of the body will constrict," he said.
"They will get smaller to try and stay warm."
"What the body tries with all its might is to protect the most important organs, which are the deepest: the heart, the brain and the lungs," he explains.
"The body tries to keep them warm by redirecting heat from the fingers and toes inward, so the blood vessels in the fingers get very small and not enough blood passes through them."
It's important for the body to do this -- and to do it quickly -- because winter weather has been associated with health risks from heart attacks, asthma symptoms, frostbite, and hypothermia.
Worldwide, cold tends to cause more heat-attributable deaths than heat, according to a 2015 study published in The Lancet.
An "icy" risk for the heart
Cold weather can affect the heart, especially if you have cardiovascular disease.
"You always hear about people going out to shovel snow and having a heart attack," Salamon explains.
Cold can narrow your blood vessels, and that can put stress on your heart.
"Shoveling snow is one example of how people with heart disease or risk factors for heart disease push themselves harder than they otherwise would. Shoveling is hard work; people with heart disease and back problems run a increased risk of injury or illness from shoveling," Dr. Reed Caldwell, an associate professor in the Ronald O. Perelman Department of Emergency Medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and an emergency department physician, previously told CNN.
In a study published in the BMJ in 2010, a reduction of just one degree Celsius in temperature was associated with a cumulative increase of 2% in the risk of suffering a myocardial infarction.
The study included data from 84,010 hospital admissions for heart attacks in England and Wales between 2003 and 2006. The researchers analyzed the data to determine any possible relationship between outside temperatures and heart attacks.
However, the heart is not the only part of the body that can become more vulnerable to health problems in winter.
How to deal with asthma in winter
Cold can wreak havoc on the lungs, as dry air can irritate the airways, especially in people with lung conditions like asthma, according to the American Lung Association.
"Cold air causes bronchospasm, so people with asthma and COPD may experience increased symptoms in the winter months," Caldwell says.
If you have asthma and are out in the cold, "put a scarf around your nose. That definitely helps, because then you're breathing in your own vapor from your mouth," Salamon said.
On the other hand, a more well-known cold-related health problem is frostbite.
Freezing: a danger even for the eyes
Frostbite can occur in subzero temperatures when blood vessels constrict, skin temperatures drop, and ice crystals form around and inside cells, causing damage.
"There are a number of cold-related skin injuries. The first is called 'mild cold burn' and involves cooling of the outermost skin tissue without actual destruction of the tissue. This is known to be occurring because the The skin can become discolored, sometimes a deep red, and it can appear irritated and very sensitive, which is a good warning sign that the skin is getting too cold," Caldwell explains.
"Next, severe frostbite or cold burn involves actual destruction of the skin, and frozen skin often appears pale, waxy, and can sometimes even turn purple or black as the tissue begins to die. Frozen skin can be numb or not hurt," he explains.
According to Salamon, frostbite can even affect the eyes.
"When you're outdoors and it's very windy, you can freeze your eyes, which is very dangerous," he explains.
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"The cold begins to form small blisters in the eye or small crystals on the skin, which can turn around and damage the skin or the eye itself," he explains.
"Those blood vessels constrict a lot, so not a lot of blood goes through, which reduces circulation to the eyes."
Blood vessels constrict to prevent hypothermia, a dangerous situation that occurs when the body loses more heat than it produces, causing the core temperature to drop below 35°C.
"The most worrisome effect of exposure to cold is hypothermia, which can damage vital organs such as the heart, nervous system and kidneys. In extreme cases, death can result. This is often the result of abnormal heart rhythms," he stated. previously told CNN by Dr. Jeahan Colletti, an emergency medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Those most at risk of hypothermia -- and any cold-related health hazards -- tend to be older adults, Salamon said.
"If people have a neighbor who is an elderly person, when the weather is really cold, they should check on them. When people are very, very cold, they can get very confused and not even know enough to ask for help." , said.
More tips to stay warm and healthy
What else can people do to stay warm and healthy this winter?
An important measure to reduce risk is what we wear.
"It's really important to dress in layers, so...wear more than one pair of gloves and top with a mitt, because the air that gets trapped between those layers helps keep you warm," Salamon explains.
"Tight clothing is not good, because you don't take advantage of layering. Wear looser sweaters, shawls if you're sitting in an enclosed space, to try to keep you warm. It helps to wear a balaclava to protect your ears and nose ", Explain.
"If you get wet, for example when playing in the snow or shoveling snow, take off your wet clothes, because it makes things worse. It makes things colder. Boots should be waterproof."
Preventative measures not only involve putting on appropriate clothing for the cold, but also avoiding having too many cocktails in cold weather, says Colletti, of the Mayo Clinic.
"Avoid drinking alcohol in cold weather, as mental awareness is impaired, limiting the ability to recognize symptoms of significant cold exposure. Alcohol also causes the body's blood vessels to dilate, increasing loss hot," he said.
-- Dave Hennen and Jamie Gumbrecht contributed reporting.
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