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| Freezing/ Hypothermia |
| The freezing/hypothermia experiments were conducted on men to simulate the conditions that the army suffered from on the eastern front. (Russia) The German forces weren't prepared for the bitter Siberian cold. Thousand of German soldiers died from freezing to death. The experiments were conducted under the supervision of Dr. Sigmond Rascher at Birkenau, Dachua, and Auschwitz. Dr. Rascher reported directly to Himmler. Dr. Rascher also publicized the results of his freezing experiments at the 1942 medical conference entitles "Medical Problems Arising from Sea and Winter". There were two different types of freezing experiments. First, the soctors wanted to see how long it would take to lower the body temperature to death. After that, they wanted to see how to resuscitate the frozen victim. The two main ways they would freeze the victim would be putting the person in an icy vat of water or putting the vicitm outside naked in sub-zero temperatures. The icy water method was the fastest way to drop the body temperature. The Germans chose younge, healthy Jews or Russians for the experiment. An insulated probe which was used to measure the drop in body temperature, was inserted into the victim's rectum. The victim was then stripped and placed in the water and started to freeze. It was learned that most victims lost consciousness and died when the body temperature dropped to 25 C. The second way to freeze a victim is the outdoor way. The extreme winters of Auschwitz made a natural place for this experiment. Warming Experiments Sun Lamp: The victims were placed under sun lamps which were so hot they would burn the skin. Internal Irrigation: The frozen victim would have water heated to an almost boiling temperature. The water would be forcefully irrigated into the stomach, bladder, and intestines. All of the victims appeared to have died because of this. Body Heat: Heinrich Himmler suggested to Dr. Rascher that he try to use women to warm the frozen men. He suggested that the women have intercourse with the dead, frozen men. This sick, perverted experiment had some success, although not as much as the Hot Bath. Hot Bath: The victims were placed in warm water and the temperature was slowly increased. This method was more successful than if the water was warmed up too quickly. Many victims died from shock if the warming of the water was too fast. |
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