Common Reasons for Having Cold Feet
“There are many reasons for poor circulation,” Dr. Agarwal says. Smoking and obesity are common risk factors, as well as other underlying health conditions (like Peripheral Arterial Disease or Raynaud’s Disease). Getting regular exercise, avoiding cigarettes, and eating a balanced diet are all healthy habits that can help improve your circulation. But you can also see a doctor to find out whether your poor circulation is tied to another medical condition. RELATED: 3 Foot Stretches You Should Do Every Day, According to Podiatrists Since your hands and feet are not major muscle groups, they may experience a decrease in blood flow during times of stress. And since circulation plays a key role in body temperature regulation, this may cause your hands and feet to feel cold and/or clammy. If you have hypothyroidism—again, an underactive thyroid gland—your thyroid gland isn’t producing enough of these hormones. This can gradually cause your body to slow down and function less properly. And it can make you feel tired, sore, and depressed (among other things). It can also cause you to be more sensitive to the cold. Some people are born with hypothyroidism, and there are also a handful of things that can cause it later in life (certain medications, thyroid inflammation, and Hashimoto’s disease, to name a few). There are also several different risk factors: Women, folks over 60, those with a family history of thyroid issues, diabetics, and many more can be more susceptible to hypothyroidism. (It’s worth noting that many of the other conditions associated with hypothyroidism can cause your feet and hands to become cold, specifically, while hypothyroidism may lead to feeling cold in general.) RELATED: 6 Easy Ways to Beat Sore Feet Peripheral Neuropathy: This means your peripheral nervous system—the nerves and nerve cells outside your brain and spinal cord—has been damaged, making your nerves less effective at sending signals to the rest of your body. Neuropathy can affect the nerves in any part of your body—including your feet. And if the nerves that are tasked with sensing temperature get damaged, they may start telling the rest of your body that your feet are cold when they actually aren’t. Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD): A blood vessel disorder resulting from blood vessels becoming so narrow or blocked that they can’t carry blood from your heart to your other organs. This can be caused by fatty plaque building up in your arteries (a condition that has its own name: atherosclerosis). PAD typically affects the legs or the arms. And you may be at higher risk if you smoke, have high blood pressure, have diabetes, have high cholesterol, or are over the age of 60. Raynaud’s Disease: A rare blood vessel disorder that typically affects the fingers and toes. If you have Raynaud’s disease, your blood vessels may constrict when you’re cold or stressed—causing a lack of circulation to certain parts of your body (like your fingers and toes). You may be at higher risk if you’re a woman, over the age of 30, have a family history of the disease, or live in a place with a cold climate. Buerger’s Disease: A blood vessel condition, more formally known as thromboangiitis obliterans, that can cause the blood vessels to swell, preventing blood from flowing properly. This can cause blood clots, and it can also cause your hands and feet to burn, tingle, change color, or grow cold. “[Our] smallest blood vessels are in our hands and feet, so we are more sensitive to changes in these areas,” Dr. Agarwal says. “If the blood vessels in the hands or feet narrow for any reason—causing decreased blood flow—we experience a cold sensation.” Anemia: A fairly common blood condition in which you have a lower-than-normal red blood cell count due to any number of reasons: blood loss, your body isn’t producing enough red blood cells, or your body is destroying too many red blood cells. Red blood cells are responsible for circulating oxygen throughout the body—without enough of them, the body struggles to function properly. This is why anemia can leave you feeling tired, weak, dizzy—and often, cold. Here are some basic tips and healthy habits to warm up your cold feet:
Stretch or move your feet: According to Dr. Agarwal, moving around can get some blood flowing to your feet, which can help you warm them up. Get some exercise: Regular exercise is one easy way to improve your circulation, which can help you prevent cold feet before they happen. Soak them in a warm foot bath: Fill your bath tub or a large enough vessel with warm water and let our icy feet soak for about 15 minutes to heat them up and increase circulation to the area. Use a hot water bottle or heating pad: Soothe freezing feet and toes by wrapping them in a warm pad or heated blanket, or using a hot water bottle. Minimize stress: Since stress can cause your extremities to grow cold, it’s worth it to cut down on stress wherever you can (here are some ways to manage it). Wear socks: Socks are an obvious way to warm up and insulate chronically cold feet. Even better? Treat yourself to a luxurious pair of warming socks for extra coziness. Cut back on tobacco: Smoking—and tobacco use in general—has been linked to a few different blood vessel disorders. By cutting down, you may be able to reduce your risk of experiencing some of these conditions.
