Helen is filmed in the immersion tank under supervision by Professor Tipton
A team of university sports scientists has been instrumental in preparing Blue Peter presenter for a challenging trip to the Antarctic which was announced today.
The show’s Helen Skelton spent a day at the University’s Sports Science Extreme Environments Laboratory to prepare for the trip which will see her travel 500 miles across Antarctica to the South Pole in aid of the BBC’s Sport Relief. The presenter wanted to prepare for the sub-zero temperatures she will face during the trip and find out what happens when the body is subjected to extreme cold.
Helen spent time immersed in the cold water tank in temperatures of just 12 degrees centigrade, the lowest it was safe to undergo, and in air at -15°C to see how her body reacted to the cold. Under the close supervision of Professor Mike Tipton and team, Helen stayed in the water for 45 minutes during which time her vital signs were monitored, including her breathing rate and deep body temperature.
Within a short space of time Helen’s heart rate had increased from 44 beats per minute to 88, she was taking deeper breaths and she had begun shivering. Her core body temperature fell from the normal 37.5 degrees to 35.74 during the duration of her immersion during which Professor Tipton talked her through her body’s responses and what she was feeling.
Professor Tipton, who specialises in thermoregulation, said: “During exposure to cold the blood supply to the skin shuts down to protect the body’s deep tissues.
“We saw Helen conform to the usual comfort measures such as huddling her body which reduces the surface area exposed to cold and insulates the torso. After about 30 minutes she began shivering and towards the end of her immersion this was vigorous and involuntary and she was clearly very uncomfortable, although still perfectly safe.”
Helen tries to send a text after emerging from the water
Helen said: “I’ve been in some extreme situations but nothing like this. It was so cold it was actually painful!”
On emerging from the water Helen was instructed to send a text to test how the cold had affected her ability to think and translate the thought into fine motor activity using her hands. She tried for several minutes to complete the phrase ‘I am very cold please send help and a cup of tea’ but struggled to complete the task.
“It was only when I was trying to send the text message that I realised how my body was affected. It’s an important lesson to learn.”
Even more important was the lesson Helen learned next after being carefully placed in a warm bath to aid her recovery. Within minutes of entering the bath Helen said she felt brilliant, but the thermometer measuring her deep body temperature continued to read 35.5 degrees.
She said: “It just goes to show that the body can trick you into thinking you’re ok before you’ve actually recovered.”
Professor Tipton said: “Despite the surface of the skin becoming warm and the person beginning to feel normal again, deep body temperature can remain very cold for some time. It’s important that people in freezing temperatures are aware of this so that having returned to the warm and become comfortable they can be careful not to expose themselves to the cold again too quickly.”
Helen departs on 31 December where she will journey through Antarctica by ski, by kite and by bike to raise money for Sport Relief. Her previous challenges include being the first person to solo kayak the length of the Amazon in 2010 and completing a dramatic high-wire walk across Battersea Power Station for Red Nose Day in 2011.
