Overexposure to the cold causes frostbite, the freezing of skin or tissue under the skin. Symptoms include a loss of feeling and a white or pale appearance in fingers, toes, or nose and ear lobes.
Serious cases can cause permanent damage including amputation in the worst instances.
Hypothermia sets in when your body's temperature drops to less than 96 degrees. Symptoms include uncontrollable shivering, slow speech, memory lapses, frequent stumbling, drowsiness, and exhaustion. Each year an average of 700 people die of hypothermia in the United States. Change wet clothes right away because they don't provide insulation and transmit body heat more quickly to the cold air. Avoid cotton and jeans that get wet easily.