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17th Dec 2014

XE doctors give Father Christmas a seasonal health check

Christmas is getting closer and the elves are working hard on getting all the presents ready. Reindeer's are being groomed and the sleigh shined to within an inch of its life as preparations for the big event ramp up. But how is Father Christmas coping with this big event?

Does the barrage of mince pies and sherry he consumes over one evening have an effect on him? Does his living conditions in the North Pole, where he is working in 24 hours of darkness, affect his mental state? Does he suffer from hypoxia as he delivers all the presents around the world?

Xtreme Everest doctors, Dr Ned Gilbert-Kawai, Dr Oli Firth and Dr Dan Martin, set out to give Father Christmas a full health check in their article published in the Student British Medical Journal looking at all the issues he could face whilst he undertakes this important job and offer him some sound advice for improving his health and well-being.

In regards to avoiding deep vein thrombosis (DVT), Dr Martin says âAs long as he got off his sleigh for each delivery the chances would be "unlike Santa"slim.â with Dr Gilbert adding âHe may, however, be at risk of developing DVTs the other 364 days of the year as he relaxes, sleeps in, and recovers from his almighty hangover.â

Looking at weather issues and if Father Christmas beard will keep him cosy, Dr Gilbert-Kawai says âWhile living at the North Pole will have conferred some degree of tolerance to hypothermia, one cannot expect exuberant facial hair alone to afford sufficient protection against the low temperaturesâ He goes on to say âAs any object in space will radiate heat until it cools to the surrounding heat, the temperature in space is close to absolute zero at 3 degrees Kelvin or minus 270 degrees centigrade.â

Taking this in mind, Dr Gilbert-Kawai suspects that if Mrs Christmas hasn't ensured that Father Christmas is wrapped up in multiple layers of Merino wool, he's going to get very chilly!

When it comes to the potential alcohol intake that Father Christmas may experience Dr Firth reminds us of the dangers that he faces in regards to his health and the law âWe all know Santa is partial to a spot of sherry at Christmas. In the United Kingdom, a 50 mL glass of sherry is equal to one unit of alcohol. He
would consume 91 000 000 units in one evening "over 31 hours. With the legal
limit of alcohol in the blood being 80 mg per 100 mL blood [, Santa would
be in the region of 20 million times over the legal driving limit.â

So should Father Christmas be worried? Is it time for him to be asking for a healthy snack and a fruit juice when making his rounds? Should top of his list this year be the world's longest scarf and a pair of fetching compression socks?

Of course not! Being so magical he doesn't need to worry about having too many mince pies or flying too high, his main concern is making sure we all get our presents on time.

To read more about the problems Father Christmas faces, you can find a full of the article can be found here

The article was originally published in the Student BMJ in 2011.

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