What warms in the short term and what warms in the long term
There are numerous tips on how to keep frosty hands and feet warm. Below you will find some that will help directly when your hands and feet feel like they are below freezing again. This is followed by long-term tips to prevent this annoying phenomenon.
What warms in the short term
- No tight clothing: To keep your body warm even in cold temperatures, you should wear warm and not too tight clothing. Tight jeans or a belt that is too tight, but also the straps of a heavy rucksack that press on the shoulders, can inhibit blood circulation.
- Put on a hat: Keep your head and neck warm with a hat and scarf when it’s cold outside. When it is cold, the body releases a lot of energy through the head and neck because the brain, as a vital organ, needs to be constantly supplied with blood. He often compensates for the lost warmth with cold feet and hands.3.
- Stimulate blood circulation: Massaging your hands and feet vigorously stimulates blood circulation, making them warm.
- Drink enough: Drink plenty of water and unsweetened, hot tea. The latter warms the hands directly and, of course, the body from the inside out. But almost more importantly: thanks to sufficient fluid, blood pressure is maintained in the circulatory system and the blood flows more easily into all blood vessels. You should drink 30 to 40 milliliters per kilo of body weight every day. A person weighing 60 kg should therefore drink around 1.8 liters of fluid per day or consume some of it with food. Good to know: If you have low blood pressure, it can help to eat more salt to increase your blood volume.
- Keep moving: If you are out and about in the cold, keep moving, for example by walking briskly to the next bus stop instead of waiting for the bus. This generally helps against shivering and keeps the circulation going, which is good for the blood flow.
- Keep your feet warm: Warm socks and a hot water bottle at night will keep your feet warm. There are also insulating and warming insoles for your shoes when you are out and about. However, make sure that the shoes are not too tight as a result. This can impair blood circulation.
- Keep your hands warm: The same applies to gloves: make sure they are not too small or tight and are made of a warming material such as fleece or merino wool. You can also put heat pads in your jacket pocket to warm up cold fingers if necessary.
- Blood circulation: Alternating cold and warm showers stimulate blood circulation. If this is too much effort for you, you can also simply make an alternating bath for your feet or hands or just sit in the hot bath.
- Give up alcohol: Did you know? It is a misconception that alcohol warms you from the inside in cold temperatures. Alcohol dilates the blood vessels so that more blood is directed to the skin and extremities, which feels warm for a short time. However, the body actually cools down because the heat is released more quickly into the cold ambient air.
What protects hands and feet from the cold in the long term
Irrespective of winter temperatures, the most common health-related causes of frosty hands and feet are circulatory disorders. It is therefore important to keep the cardiovascular system and blood vessels healthy so that the blood flow functions optimally.
If you exercise regularly and keep moving in your everyday life, you train your cardiovascular system and boost your blood circulation. Endurance sports such as swimming, jogging or cycling train the cardiovascular system, while strength training builds muscle, which in turn warms the body.
Make sure you eat an adequate and balanced diet. These include fresh vegetables and fruit, plant-based unsaturated fatty acids, enough protein without too much animal fat and little added sugar. This prevents vascular calcification and blockages and keeps the blood vessels healthy and elastic.
Avoid alcohol and smoking, as both damage the blood vessels in the long term and increase the risk of hardening of the arteries (arteriosclerosis).
When you should seek medical advice
In principle, cold hands and feet alone are no indication of a serious illness. On the contrary: “For many people, they are more or less part of everyday life. So there is no need to worry if you have always suffered from cold extremities,” emphasizes Kabáczy.
In rare cases, however, additional symptoms occur that may indicate a disease. For example, cold hands and feet are sometimes associated with hypothyroidism. hypothyroidism is sometimes indicated. “Among other things, this is usually accompanied by weight gain and constipation, as the metabolism is slowed down,” says Kabáczy.
Raynaud’s syndrome is also occasionally mentioned. The fingers and often also the toes not only feel cold, but also numb, turn bluish or red and hurt.
Furthermore, anemia, for example, can lead to cold hands and feet, as the extremities are not supplied with sufficient oxygen. Anemia also manifests itself with other symptoms such as fatigue, tiredness or dizziness . Kabáczy therefore recommends consulting a doctor if you suffer from additional symptoms in addition to cold hands and feet, or if the phenomenon occurs suddenly and especially on one side. This is an emergency and must be clarified immediately.
