NHS HIGHLAND: We can do a lot to protect our health (and cars) in winter
There are some collections of letters that we know well and will rarely need more explanation. One is NHS and another is likely to be MOT.
We may not be sure what the letters MOT stand for though and on occasion this has been asked as a quiz question. MOT stands for the Ministry of Transport which was the department which set up the tests for cars to make sure that they were safe to drive. The MOT started in 1960 and so is 64 years old.
Even though the Ministry of Transport is long gone, we still call the test the MOT and we also sometimes refer to MOT for any type of regular check-up. We may think about having an MOT for our health. Our health can benefit from checks by professionals but just like with a car we can do a lot ourselves.
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At this time of year in particular it is good to think about how we can check our health and what we can do to keep well and avoid illness and injury in the winter. As the days get shorter, we will be going out more in poor visibility and as the days get colder there is more chance of slippery pavements with ice and snow.
We may find that our vision is not as good as it was, and we would benefit from getting it checked at the optician. We may need to get new shoes or to make sure that we clear obstructions around our house or flat and perhaps make sure we have some salt ready for paths. It is a bit like making sure that a car has working lights and good tread on the tyres.
When we do go out in cold weather we need to take extra care, whether we are driving on icy roads or walking on icy pavements. Skidding on the road and falling on the pavement can both end up with bad outcomes.
Winter is also the time of year when we are more likely to get chest infections. This is because we spend more time inside and we can more easily catch illnesses from one another. We can take some precautions against passing on these infections such as those we commonly used during the pandemic, using tissues to cover mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, washing our hands and limiting contact with others when ill.
Vaccination too remains vital. The current autumn vaccination programmes protect against Covid and influenza while other vaccines protect against RSV and pneumonia.
We can’t vaccinate our cars to help them run better in the winter but if we are invited for vaccination ourselves we should take up the offer to help ourselves during this season.
Dr Tim Allison is NHS Highland’s director of public health and policy.
