Why am I always cold?

[Moptop]

Is anyone out there 'always cold' like me? When everyone is wandering around in tee shirts I seem to need a technical baselayer and a tee on top (with long sleeves.) I always have to take spare clothes - which is a right pain.

Recently I went for a check up and doc said - 'Doing well - oh, hang on a minute your cholesterol reading is blipping' and peering into the screen she said Oh! - its lower than normal!

My thinking is that I have inadequate fat in the blood maybe that is whats making me permanently cold.

In addition I can't take real heat! I have to run away and hide in the shade once its in the 80s!

I get very fed up with all this as it makes me feel I can't join in with some activities unless I take a truck load of spare gear (which adds to the weight!)

I am light and skinny with a kind of Scandinavian skin (pale and easily burned) and build, and I eat a diet of wholefoods, never drink tea or coffee or eat red meat.

Any comments and ideas gratefully received!

[redrhodie]

I'm freezing all the time, too! I don't have an explanation or advice, but I'm right with you, sister!

I'm also thin, fair skinned, with low cholesterol, and low blood pressure, too. I also don't eat red meat or poultry, just a little fish now and then.

I remember when I was a teenager and I ate everything, and was overweight, I was also always cold. This leads me to believe that for me, it's not diet related. I wonder if it could be a circulatory issue?

[michelem]

I have no idea as I am always cold as well, BUT I am thin, olive-skinned, low blood pressure, and HIGH CHOLESTEROL despite plenty of exercise and adherence to a non-processed/whole foods diet with olive oil, fish, and ground flax seed as my primary sources of fat.

My mother and grandmother were always cold and diagnosed with low thyroid. Supposedly, my thyroid is fine though.

I don't understand your intolerance to heat - you say you are ALWAYS cold, but have to find shade in the 80's. Do you mean that you are NOT cold once it hits 80 degrees? I am able to tolerate heat into the 100's and continue to wear long pants and long sleeves in that weather (I never bare my arms and legs in public - not even on the bike).

Hope you find some answers!

[mimitabby]

I am another always cold and can't take the heat.
I have noticed that since i have gotten fitter, I can handle more heat
and cold now.

If I am in lower temps (below 60) and am inactive, i get miserable fast.
As long as I can stay moving, i can handle it now.

I also used to get really painful ears in the cold (50-60 degrees). THAT has also vanished.

[Zen]

You're all thin. You don't have enough insulation.
Have some candy corn.

[echidna]

Borderline anemia???? Many docs underdiagnose this in women, figuring that it's just a byproduct of menstruation.

[kelownagirl]

I am another always cold and can't take the heat.
I have noticed that since i have gotten fitter, I can handle more heat
and cold now.

If I am in lower temps (below 60) and am inactive, i get miserable fast.
As long as I can stay moving, i can handle it now.

I also used to get really painful ears in the cold (50-60 degrees). THAT has also vanished.

Me too Mimi, I can handle more heat and cold now. And I don't get the earaches I used to get when I first started biking.

I dress in layers at work because I can go from freezing to sweating in a matter of minutes. If I'm not moving, I get really cold, but as soon as I start walking around, I have to peel off the layers.

[KnottedYet]

Hot flashes are great for warming me right up!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I am another always cold and can't take the heat.
I have noticed that since i have gotten fitter, I can handle more heat
and cold now.

If I am in lower temps (below 60) and am inactive, i get miserable fast.
As long as I can stay moving, i can handle it now.

I also used to get really painful ears in the cold (50-60 degrees). THAT has also vanished.

I am the same as Mimi. I'm 53 and was cold all my life. 2 years ago I began exercising (walking and biking) regularly for the first time in my life. I don't get cold nearly as much anymore, whether I am inside or outside. I think my circulation has improved and warm blood gets everywhere in my body more efficiently now than it used to. People don't shake my hand and exclaim "Oh what cold hands you have!" anymore.

[Wahine]

Just like a house, what makes a person feel warm or cold depends on two things; insulation and the furnace. Obviously, if you have less insulation [fat]you lose heat faster. But even with little insulation you can maintain body temperature by revving up the furnace. The body's furnace is metabolism which is dependent on cellular activity, particularly in the muscles. Exercise helps. Metabolism relies on fuel so keeping warm also depends on supplying adequate fuel to the metabolic engine. I would try eating snacks frequently throughout the day, trail mix works well for this. You want something with some high caloric density so that you can eat a little bit and still get 100 to 200 calories. This might mean you need to change your lunch and dinner habits to keep from gaining excessive fat if this concerns you.

Other factors that affect metabolism include hormonal levels, muscle bulk and fluid balance. If it's a concern have your hormones checked, particularly thyroid. Also you should build muscle with resistance exercise and make sure you're well hydrated.

Another reason why it's important enough is the necessity of caloric intake in maintaining metabolic hormone levels. When a person eats less than 80% of their required daily intake, [taking into account exercise], their metabolic hormone levels drop off significantly.

As for being able to handle heat, this also depends on insulation and fluid balance.

Hope this helps.

[HappyAnika]

I'm usually either too cold or too hot. My comfort range is very narrow. But I would rather deal with the cold and add layers than be hot. If it's too hot indoors I get nauseous, and outdoors I just get pissy. I used to live in AZ, and you could not pay me to live there again. Anyway, I feel generally cold pretty easily, but the worst of it is my extremities. (And I eat enough candy corn, I'm at the very top of the range of "healthy" BMI). My DH is always shocked at how cold my hands and feet get during the winter. The worst is in the mornings when driving to work. Even with down/thinsulate mittens on, my fingers are freezing, so cold it's painful. I have to start wearing fleece gloves when it gets below about 55. If it's too cold inside at work, my fingertips start turning purple and my hands get so stiff I can barely type.

The older I get, the more I exercise, and yet the colder my hands and feet get. I was at my chiropractor's office this spring and there was a poster outlining symptoms of people with problems of various systems. One was the thyroid and so many of the symptoms rang true with me. I talked to my best friend about it, who is a Doctor of Osteopathy, she said people with borderline thyroid problems often benefit from iodine supplements, helps boost their metabolism and regulate their systems. I was just looking into iodine supplements when I got pregnant, figured I'd hold off on them until post pregnancy.

One other tip, I've heard that taking cayenne pepper supplements can help improve circulation and therefore make your extremities warmer. I tried this briefly, but my stomach couldn't handle the pepper (and there are very few things my stomach can't handle in the way of food).

A couple of my favorite tips for warming up:
Drink a hot beverage (duh).
Run hands under warm/hot water.
Throw clothes in dryer for a few minutes, then take them out and put them on immediately.
Stand in front of fire place (but we don't have one at home, so I do it when I can).
Stand on top of heating register so that heat goes up flannel pj pants.
Use hair dryer to send warm air up back of shirt (aaaah, love this one before getting into bed).

Oh, and those chemical hand/toe warmers are a gift from god. (Widely available during ski season at REI and other sporting goods stores).

[Moptop]

Thanks to all you good people who answered my post; you gave me lots to think about and to do. I shall be taking it all on board this winter.

ZenCentury, your recomended link was terrific - thanks so much for finding it.

Yes, I do live in SNOWdonia and it seems true that Americans find the UK a fridge (including my American, cycling, daughter-in law!) BUT several of you get cold anyway, in the US, so moving to Candycorn land isn't going to help me!

I hope all you fellow sufferers got a lot out of the postings to help you in the coming months. I'll maybe post again next Spring to ask whether you had a better than usual winter! Final tip is to wear rubber gloves if you do the washing up by hand - to preserve the natural oils in the skin.

Meantime, here is a little batch of photos of my patch - SNOWdon is in the background.