Have you met someone who seems to feel cold all the time? For people like that, come rain or shine, they must take hot shower, and they can hardly be separated from their cardigans or other thick clothing that can readily keep cold at bay.
Such people are usually unable to tolerate cold drinks, but would rather take warm beverages (including water); and when they venture out of their comfort zone, they do so with trepidation, fearing they may not be able to withstand the weather!
If you happen to fall into this category, experts say you may need to see your doctor for medical examination to ascertain your true state of health.
A family physician, Dr. Omowaleola Fola-Davis, explains that while it is not necessarily unusual for an individual to feel colder than others around him, certain symptoms — such as the ones enumerated above — may be more pronounced in other people than in the general population.
“When you fall into this category, there are probable medical reasons that may be responsible for you feeling colder than normal,” Fola-Davis counsels. What are these reasons? Read on…
Meal skipping
In these days of weight watching, it is not uncommon to hear people describe how they have reduced their meal intake, and how they skip breakfasts or other meals in order to maintain an ideal figure.
If you are one of these diet freaks, physicians warn that you are toying with your health. Nutritionists warn that some people get cold when they skip meals or take in too few calories. A nutritionist, Dr. Remi Omotunde, says when you embark on any form of fasting (meal skipping), your body responds by entering into “hunger mode,” sequel to which it seeks to conserve energy and subsequently produces less heat.
Fola-Davis adds, “Skipping meals is often seen as an attractive way to lose weight, but the side effects are serious than any potential benefits.
“It causes your blood sugar levels to fall, even beyond optimal limits, resulting in the condition known as hypoglycemia. And though it is usually mild, hypoglycemia can become severe and life-threatening. Feeling cold and clammy, aside from other unpalatable symptoms, are some of the symptoms of hypoglycemia.”
“So, to save yourself from feeling cold and clammy all the time, eat when you should and only embark on fasting within reasonable bounds, especially if you have any health issue,” Omotunde advises.
Being underweight
Again, weight-watchers must be careful, as researchers warn that when your body weight is too low for your age or height, it can result in regularly feeling cold.
An expert in internal medicine, Dr. Howard LeWine, says many people feel cold when others around them are comfortable, explaining that one of the reasons may be because of low body weight.
He explains, “Both fat thickness and muscle mass help us keep warm. Muscle activity generates heat and fat acts as insulation. If you have lost a lot of weight recently or you have always been thin, you might be sensitive to colder temperatures that would be comfortable for most people.”
Indeed, experts at Somerset and Wessex Eating Disorders Association (a United Kingdom-based outfit that serves those affected by eating disorders) warn that low body weight may lead to slowing of the heart rate and low blood pressure.
“You may feel tired, faint, dizzy and have palpitations. You will feel cold, even in warm surroundings,” they warn. So, while working to make sure that your weight does not get out of hand, do so with expert supervision, physicians advise.
Anaemia
Among other unpalatable symptoms of anaemia, experts say, you must see your doctor if you experience numbness or coldness in your feet. Fola-Davis says anaemia can, indeed, cause a person to feel colder than other people in the same room.
She notes that your physician can diagnose anaemia with a physical exam and blood tests, and that when he is sure of the cause of your problem, he will recommend appropriate treatment.
Again, she says, hormonal imbalances which, in women, include fluctuating estrogen levels, can make you sensitive to cold temperatures.
Troublesome thyroid
When your thyroid performs below expectation, it means you have underactive thyroid, medically known as hypothyroidism.
Generally, the thyroid produces important hormones that control how your body gets energy from the foods you eat. If your thyroid is not working well, experts say, your body uses energy more slowly or quickly than it should.
“If your thyroid is not active enough, it is called hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism can make you gain weight, feel tired, and struggle with cold temperatures. Feeling cold can be a symptom of hypothyroidism,” Fola-Davis reveals.
She warns that millions of people around the world have one thyroid disease or the other, and that certain factors predispose people to developing the disease.
“There are some factors that can increase your risk of developing a thyroid disorder. They include gender — women are six to eight times more likely than men to develop a thyroid condition; age — people aged over 50 years have increased risk of thyroid disease; smoking, family history, etc.”
What this translates into is that when you “feel funny,” don’t assume anything, see the doctor!
Raynaud’s phenomenon
A professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, Howard LeWine, explains that the normal response to cold temperatures is to shunt blood away from the skin to keep the internal organs warm.
In people with Raynaud’s phenomenon, he says, that natural response is extreme. “The tiny blood vessels get severely narrowed and markedly reduce blood flow to the skin, most often in the fingers and toes. One or more digit turns white or blue, temporarily. People with Raynaud’s tend to be much more sensitive to even minor drops in air temperature than other people,” he adds.
He suggests that in addition to wearing gloves and thick socks, such people must keep their core body temperature up by wearing lots of layers of clothing and drinking warm beverages.
This does not preclude seeing the physician who will determine the right course of treatment, LeWine says.
Copyright PUNCH.
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