Everyone recognizes it, cold hands during the winter. Whatever you try, they just don’t seem to get warm. But how do cold hands arise and what can you do about it?
Muscles
Cold hands happen when the muscles of your blood vessels contract due to the cold. They close, as it were. As a result, the skin turns white. After some time, the muscles relax again, causing your blood vessels to open wide and your hands to turn blue. Hence the statement “blue from the cold”. If you then come into a warm environment, the muscles contract again and the blood flows better. The skin then returns to normal color.
Causes
Cold hands are also often associated with a slow thyroid gland. All processes in the body work too slowly, which can cause cold hands and feet. In addition, the hormone balance can also play a role in cold hands. During the menstrual cycle, women’s body temperature changes by a few degrees. Cold hands can also be a result of poor circulation.
Prevent
It is important to keep your hands warm. Gloves are important here, but also make sure that your blood circulation is optimal. Regular exercise helps with this because it stimulates your blood flow and ensures that enough blood flows to the ends of your body.
Women versus men
Both women and men can suffer from cold hands, but scientific research shows that it is more common in women. Women are also more often cold than men. This is because the woman’s body handles the heat that is produced more efficiently. The fat is better distributed, so that more blood flows to the organs than to the ends of the body. That is why women are always more prone to cold hands and feet than men. Researchers at the University of Utah have found that the average temperature of women’s hands is 30.7°C and that of men is 32.3°C.