Experiencing Cold feet during winter

Do you suffer from cold extremities during the winter months? Do your feet still feel cold even after you attempt to warm them up? What’s the reason behind the feeling of colder feet during sleep? This article will explain the reasons behind experiencing cold feet and how you can deal with this issue.

 

Reasons behind cold feet

There are many reasons that explain why you might feel cold feet during the night and experience numbing in your extremities throughout your day, some of them are:

  • Colder weather: The feeling that your extremities, especially your feet, are way colder than the rest of your body is a natural bodily reaction to the reduction in temperature, especially in winter. When your body experiences lower temperatures, the blood vessels in our extremities constrict which reduces the blood circulation in that area. Our bodies employ this mechanism as it minimizes heat loss, and ensures that sufficient blood is being circulated in other parts of our body.
  • Feeling stressed and under pressure: in cases such as this, our bodies start to pump out elevated amounts of adrenaline into the blood circulation. Adrenaline triggers the constriction of the blood vessels in the extremities in an attempt to sequester energy and heat to more important parts of our bodies such as the heart.
  • Patterns that impact blood circulation: problems in blood circulation are considered one of the most common reasons behind cold extremities, this causes the patient to experience the feeling of colder extremities constantly, specifically cold feet due to the reduced amount of circulation in that area.

Unhealthy Habits that lead to problems in blood circulation include:

People who lead lifestyles that include lack of physical activity, consume unhealthy food, suffer from excess weight, smoking, elevated blood serum cholesterol levels causing narrowing of the blood vessels which compromises circulation and inhibits sufficient blood from reaching the feet, and heart disease.

  • Anemia: individuals who suffer from anemia produce fewer red blood cells than a normal healthy person, as a result, they have less properly functioning red blood cells and hemoglobin, which is responsible for transporting oxygen to all parts of the body. Reduced hemoglobin to provide warmth in our extremities, which could also lead to feeling light-headed.
    Anemia can be a result of many conditions, including:

The most common is iron deficiency, as well as other important nutrients such as Vitamin B12, and folic acid.

  • Diabetes: elevated blood sugar levels and not addressing the symptoms of diabetes in the required manner can lead to repercussions in diabetic individuals. These repercussions include constriction of the blood vessels leading to reduced blood circulation in the extremities, especially the feet, which leaves diabetics with cold feet. Diabetics can also suffer from nerve damage, and develop the feeling of numbness in the feet and hands, or even what is known as peripheral neuropathy, which is a type of nerve damage that causes twitching, tingling, or possibly severe pain in the feet.
  • Problems in the nervous system: several issues in the nervous system can lead to cold feet and tingling, and this could be accompanied by other symptoms such as numbness. For example, nerve damage resulting from an injury or wound such as frostbite, infections, or genetics.
  • Hypothyroidism: when a person suffers from hypothyroidism, it means that the thyroid gland isn’t producing enough of the hormones the body requires, this negatively impacts the metabolic functions in the body, such as reduced blood circulation, and intr un less blood circulation in the extremities which leads to cold feet. This could also cause the patient to feel light headed, tired, and cause weight gain.

Raynaud’s Disease

Raynaud’s disease is a rare condition the leads to constriction of the blood vessels in the extremities every time a person feels cold or is under a stressful situation, this leads to decreased blood flow to hands and feet which causes them to turn yellow or blue in color, as well as feel abnormal numbness and cold in the extremities. If you suffer from Raynaud’s disease, then you might that your hands and feet seem more red, and you might experience more tingling and numbness

 

Who is more at risk of suffering from Raynaud’s disease? Individuals who live in colder climates, women, and those with family history of Raynaud’s disease.

 

Natural ways to address cold extremities:

There are several effective ways in naturally raising body temperature and treating cold feet and hands in the cooler winter months.one of the most effective methods to remedy cold extremities is using herbs, as well as:

  1. Alpha lipoic acid: a naturally occurring fatty acid in our bodies, it is also naturally present in many different foods. It has many benefits in the treatment of diseases related to cold extremities, especially cold feet. Alpha lipoic acid plays an important role in metabolizing sugar and increases insulin resistance in diabetic patients. It also has an antioxidant role that can help prevent nerve damage caused by diabetes.
  2. B Vitamins: B vitamins are important in promoting healthy nerves and strengthening nerve endings in order for them to work in the desired efficiency, due to their critical role in the nervous system and brain. Therefore, B vitamins are considered extremely helpful to those with diabetes.
  3. There are several herbs and drinks help in treating cold feet, such as:
    Gginger: aids in warming up the body and energizing blood circulation in the extremities and increasing the metabolic rate to increase overall energy levels
  • Cinnamon: cinnamon possesses several characteristics that are effective in keeping the feet and hands warm.. Cinnamon also plays a role and lowering blood sugar levels in diabetics and reducing blood cholesterol.
  • Green tea: has a high ability in improving the blood circulation, which helps treat cold feet and hands
  • Cilantro seeds: considered one of the herbs that offer the feeling of warmth, in addition to its other healing properties which is beneficial to those who suffer from digestive issues and colds.

“BioNerve” product: this product contains “Alpha lipoic acid” and B-complex vitamins that promote a healthy nervous system.