CLEVELAND, Ohio (WJW) -- Dr. Robert Hughes sees an increase in emergency room patients every winter when the wind chills start to get into the negative teens, he told FOX 8.
Hughes is an emergency medicine physician and the director of University Hospitals' emergency medicine quality network.
He said they usually see a mix of people who don't have shelter and people who suffered general injuries from just being outside too long.
"Over the next couple of days this is going to be really dangerous and even minimal time outside can really cause risk of injury," Hughes said.
He thinks people should really consider if they even need to be outdoors during the first half of the week. If they do, they should layer up, cover the high-risk body parts like hands and ears, and listen to what their body is telling them.
"You definitely want to make sure you pay attention to the painful signals your body is giving and then act on those before it's too late," he added.
He said to look out for body parts turning red or pink, or if you start to feel pain then it goes away.
"That's a really bad warning sign. When things are starting to hurt is when you should really get inside," Hughes said.
Additionally, Hughes advises avoiding moisture and to dry off immediately if your clothes do get wet.
He also noted that parents should find indoor activities for kids, even though we'd normally want them to get outside and be active. He always encourages people during this time of the year to check on their loved ones and make sure they're doing alright and staying warm.