Why are my Hands and Feet always cold?
 

Since I could remember there have been times where my hands and feet always get freezing, just amost icey cold. I wonder why this is, I've been told its because of lack of body fat, don't know if thats true.
Was curious how many people get cold feet...and hands for that matter. Mine just get freezing, then I touch JS and freeze him out :lol:

It's normally a sign of poor perfusion, or blood circulation, to the tissues in the area. "Poor" can reasonably mean, in this case, "less than optimal, but probably not dangerous"... if it's a chronic thing, you may consider having it looked at, though it's likely just going to be "one of those things"... it exists, but it's not "bad" and there's not much to do about it.

Some of it can also be body fat, though if you're talking about hands and feet that's not usually the case... with exception to large people, there is just not a lot of adipose tissue (fat) in your hands and feet, that you might say if you lacked a bit, that would cause cold hands and feet. You could, however, have a low enough amount of overall insulation (body fat), and feel it more in your hands and feet... your body would be more likely to try and conserve heat or compensate for losing heat by constricting the vessels near the surface of the skin, which gives more blood (and therefore warmth) to the internal organs... this can be felt most noticeably in the hands and feet for a variety of reasons, but I would say normally it's because your hands are so innervated (have so many nerves in them) that you feel it more strongly there, plus receptors for things like temperature are very strong and persistent in the hands (meaning you feel the heat or coldness of something more strongly/accurately on your hands and fingers than, say, against your arm or leg), and your feet get the lowest perfusion in your body, since it is farthest from the heart.

I have painfully cold hands and feet :( ....yet it seems to be something that has gotten worse with age. It also could be magnified by the fact that I live in a drafty old farmhouse with high ceilings.....the heat is up there somewhere! :mad: ;)
I have asked several doctors about it...and as the previous poster said....it seems to be just one of those things. :| I am a healthy person of normal weight, with no strange syndromes....just cold hands and feet in winter! :rolleyes:
Every body has it's own idiosyncrasies I guess.....:| so....in winter months I will wear those little magic gloves things indoors on cold, drafty days, and always warm booty slippers over warm socks. I buy socks with a serious thought to their warmth. I find I can stay fairly comfortable if I try to prevent the icy hands and feet from getting too out of control in the first place. (gloves, socks, slippers) If allowed to get to the point of painful cold....it takes me a lot of "warming work" and mental determination to get my mind off my cold hands and feet and back to comfort level.

I agree that it's likely to be a circulation issue. It sounds similar to a common condition called Raynauds, but I'm no doctor. I have a friend who has the condition since she was a teenager. Warm baths and the constant wearing of gloves/socks helps to avoid 'attacks', though it's much worse during the winter months. Exercise helps her too.

Raynauds Syndrome - NHSdirect UK website

Of course, it could be something entirely different (or nothing in particular).

I have the same problem. I just put them on my husband to warm them up:)

I lived in and become used to very cold temperatures, but I still get cold hands and feet in the warmest of temperatures. I think its my body's way to tell me to work out more frequently. I also have such a low heart rate that I have to do exercises before I will be in the normal range when the doctor measures it. Also, coldness is relative so you don't want to blast your heat in your car or wear your coat indoors.

might want to consider reynaud's syndrome...

link here:

http://www.steadyhealth.com/reynauds...ms_t56035.html

sorry, seems i didn't see manorfire's post, but reynaud's is still up there...

Yeah, circulation issues don't generally improve with age. Circulation issues are especially important to monitor in diabetics, and people with chronic hypertension.

Make sure to check your feet regularly to be sure blood flow is remaining adequate, especially if you've ever had any numbness or tingling in the foot. Poor perfusion that leads to tissue damage can happen in what seems like an instant if you don't give your feet a once-over glance each day.

Learn to play piano.

Thanks for the explanation Analog.

I have cold hands and feet too, as far as I know it's just 'one of those things'..

Ahh I don't like looking up things on the net...makes me paranoid.
Like now...what if I have some random strange cancer causing my hands and feet to be cold. JK of course...
its weird..only my right hand has been really cold lately, and I am a righty tighty, seems it should be the otherway around.
Hopefully when I get back to Lubbock JStrider will keep my hands warm...if not then he'll feel the icey fingers of winter:lol:
Wonder if its because I have a low heartbeat...

It's called "being a woman".

:D

Seriously, virtually every woman I've known has had this problem, especially the slimmer ones. My wife briefly overcame it during her pregnacy but she's now back to her icy self!

I have Raynaud's...do this to see if you have it as well:
standing more or less at attention, hang your hands at your sides for about two minutes. If you have Raynaud's they will change color, to either a spotty looking purple and pink or all pink. Also, if you are warm, the fingers and feet swell noticeably with Raynaud's. Mild cases might include rosacea, a pink, ruddy tone to the cheeks; more severe cases might include heart trouble or may be part of heart trouble.
Smokers such as myself increase their Raynaud's reactions to temperature changes. It's not something 'curable'; precautions to protect the hands and feet and medications for Rosacea is all that can be done. But it is fun at parties, etc. "Watch me change color right before your eyes!":D And in High School, kids would ask me to show my hands to see how cold it was-really cold weather would make them look like the surface of Jupiter:lol:

I have the same problem. I sum it up to poor circulation because my arms, legs, and feet often go numb. I've had this my whole life and just thought it was a 'normal' thing. JJ has been trying to get me to go to the doctor for a check-up, I'll have to bring it up then and see if there is something that can be done...but most likely it's just one of those things.

I will echo ng though that smoking seemed to make it worse. While I still get numb and tingly, I'm not nearly as cold now that I stopped smoking.

Raynaud's is poor circulation in the extremities and can cause tingling and numbness-those of us who have it have legs and hands that 'fall asleep' quite often.
I'm not sure which is worse: the pain of cold in the winter or the ungodly swelling in the summer-I once was so swollen after driving for 6 hours that my feet engulfed my flipflops(I couldn't get them off)-they looked like oversized baby feet:lol:

I do have rosacea....hey! I don't have to bother with blusher or face make-up! :p
It is nice, when my hands are icy cold, to run my fingers thru the pulse points on the forehead and scalp.... cools my hot face down wonderfully......feels very good! :thumbsup:

Thanks! Feet seem to go to pot pretty quick!:hmm: :rolleyes: :eek:

If you smoke, that can contribute to those symptoms.

If you've had it all your life (or at least after puberty) then it's probably one of those things. Smoking makes the fine bloodvessels scrunch up so that'll make the hands and feet cold as well.

I have cold hands and feet as well, I've found that it helps a lot to warm up the body parts just before, i.e. the calves and lower arms with leg warmers and arm socks. It's better than wearing mittens indoors or cramming oversocked feet into the shoes. Oversockage will actually make your feet colder since circulation is hindered. Always have wriggle-room in your shoes! And clean, dry socks. Makes soooo much difference.

Cover your ears.....they are the radiator of the human body, and most heat is lost there. Keeping the body core temp. up...allows for opimum circulation, and keeps the extremities form getting too cold. First lesson in Hypothermia prevention.

Arm socks? :D

Ack! Same here! I was called Lady Death by some of my friends in high school even! I was told that it has to do with poor circulation. Boooo...

Are you a lizard? Do you need to lay on a hot rock?

I think I've found a solution...I got a heating pad for my bed. Feels so good.

opgg - do your extremities remain cold when you get overly hot in the night?