Britain will be colder than Iceland as Arctic blast hits
BRITAIN is about to turn colder than Iceland, with temperatures set to plummet to -10C (14F) in remote areas this week.
Arctic winds will sweep the country bringing harsh frosts, icy roads and widespread wintry showers.
Health officials last night extended a level 2 “alert and readiness” weather warning into the start of December.
Elderly and vulnerable people are urged to take extra care in extreme cold conditions over the coming days.
The Met Office warned the full force of the wintry blast will hit from tomorrow, ahead of the official start of winter on Friday.
Daytime highs will struggle to rise much above single figures across the UK while hovering close to freezing in the far north.
And temperatures will dip lower than Reykjavik, Iceland, which will reach -2C, and Moscow in Russia tipped to nudge -4C.
Chief forecaster Laura Paterson said: “Colder air will gradually spread south during Tuesday, with overnight frosts becoming more widespread along with a brisk northerly breeze.
“A period of more widespread cold temperatures is then expected from Wednesday onward.
“Showers down the east coast are also expected to be wintry at times with some snow and ice possible.”
Met Office spokesman Grahame Madge said a mixture of Polar and Arctic air was on its way.
“Further inland and across the moors we could see snow with hail or sleet elsewhere,” he added.
“It is going to stay cold through the week DEATHS from heart attacks and strokes could rise as Britain’s obesity epidemic takes its toll.
Falls in cardiovascular deaths over the past 50 years are threatened as dietary “indiscretions” and physical inactivity drive a rising tide of obesity and diabetes.
A new study showed that the UK now has some of the highest levels of obesity in Europe, and this could lead to an increase in deaths from cardiovascular diseases.
The researchers said the UK has the highest prevalence of adult obesity in males, with 26.9 per cent of adult men classed as obese.
This compares with an average of 21.4 per cent among the 47 countries studied.
Britain also has the second highest prevalence of obesity in females – 29.2 per cent, compared with an average of 22.9 per cent.
The figures show that the UK has the fourth highest average body mass index for males and the seventh highest for women, along with with temperatures dropping below freezing quite widely, bringing frosts and icy roads in the mornings. We could see overnight lows of -8C with -10C possible where there is lying snow over high ground in the North.”
Welfare experts have repeated calls for people with health conditions to take extra care as the mercury plummets.
Public Health England issued a cold weather health alert across most of England, warning the cold, snow and ice will put vulnerable people at risk until the weekend.
Dr Thomas Waite, of its extreme events team, said: “People with diseases such as heart and lung conditions, older people and young children can feel the ill-effects of cold weather more than the rest of us.
“Wear several thin layers instead of fewer thicker ones, keep parts of the home you’re using heated to at least 65F and keep a careful eye on the weather forecasts.”
The cold snap comes as some experts predict Britain will stay in the freezer throughout the festive season.
Long-range forecasters say this winter could be the harshest for seven years, rivalling the big chill of 2010/11.