Warning on feeling

The Met Office monitors weather changes which could lead to health problems. Extreme cold can exacerbate symptoms for patients and last winter hospitals had a 100 per cent rise in admissions related to respiratory illnesses.

Weather experts warned that doctors are failing to protect patients with respiratory problems.
This includes those with lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which affects about three million people in Britain.

The Met Office is now launching an "early warning" system for patients which alerts them when the temperature drops to dangerous levels. This is to prevent a repeat of the situation last year when many emergency departments were unable to cope with the surge.

Subscribers to the early warning service will get a phone call offering advice on how to keep healthy during extreme cold spells.

Those who sign up will also be provided with a home thermometer so they can check the outdoor temperature.

Meteorologist Wayne Elliott, head of health forecasting at the Met Office, said weather alerts should be a priority for doctors.

He said: "The weather has a major impact on people's health particularly on people's respiratory system. Pulmonary disease is a major killer and one of the reasons people go to A&E.

"We are getting people who process health systems to think about this impact. But doctors have a lot of conflicting priorities."