How to survive the winter months with these top tips
Cooler months and darker days can weigh heavily on the best of us – but this feeling only gets worse when we can’t warm up.
Feeling cold can have a knock on effect to our mental health making us sluggish, irritable or plain miserable. Here to help is Dr Juliet McGrattan – author of the award-winning book, Sorted: The Active Woman’s Guide to Health, speaker, running coach and former GP – to share some tips for how to combat the cold, and delve into what might be the cause, and when to consult your GP.
1. Have hot food and drink
Heating yourself from the inside out is a great way to raise your inner, core temperature. A cup of tea, soup or a hot meal can instantly make you feel warmer. The process of digestion also creates heat so as your gut digests what you’ve eaten and drunk, it raises your body temperature a little too.
Take note: It’s vital to give your body sufficient energy to fuel itself. Energy in the form of calories is required to maintain your normal bodily processes such as digestion, breathing and regulating body temperature. On top of this, you need energy to work, move and enjoy yourself. Consistently restricting your intake and under fuelling results in the body slowing down its metabolism and reducing its core temperature. That’s why you often feel cold if you’re trying to lose weight too quickly. It’s far better to lose any excess weight very slowly and make sure you are fueling your exercise properly.
2. Sleep well
Have you noticed you often feel cold when you’re tired? Body temperature falls a little in preparation for sleep. It stays low during the night and rises again in the morning. Sleep deprivation affects body temperature regulation making it harder to get and stay warm. Prioritising your sleep and getting into a good routine could help you keep the shivers away.
Take note: Sleep is a time when your body repairs and regenerates itself. Missing out on sleep can have a knock on effect to your general health and wellbeing. Both physical and mental health conditions such as high blood pressure, obesity and depression are more common in people who don’t get enough sleep. Adults need an average of seven to nine hours sleep each night. Sleep problems are tricky to solve but there are some behavioural therapies that can help. If you’ve been struggling with your sleep for months despite trying all the usual good sleep habits and it’s affecting your ability to cope with daily life, then make an appointment with your doctor to discuss it.
3. Warm your body
Turning up the heating is one way to feel warmer but it’s expensive, and doesn’t warm you efficiently. Infrared heating technology, on the other hand, quickly heats your body directly through direct contact, warming you through layers of clothes, deep into your muscles. It’s a soothing, gentle heat which can feel comforting on a cold day. There are many convenient solutions, like Stoov’s cordless infrared heated cushions, which can keep you cosy while you work, chat with friends or watch TV. Because infrared heating needs contact with the body, these products don’t allow much heat to escape into the air around you, so they can even keep you warm outside during the colder months, too.
Take note: Keeping your body warm can be really helpful if you’re someone who always has cold hands and feet. Raynaud’s Disease is a condition where the tiny blood vessels in your extremities spasm and constrict in response to the cold. This reduces blood flow and it’s common to see your fingers or toes turn white, cold and numb. It can be painful when the blood flow returns to them as they warm up. Prevention is the best option, using insulated gloves, glove liners and hand warmers can help but keeping your central body warm is important too. In addition to warming your core, applying topical, gentle heat with pads and hot water bottles can help with general aches and pains, tense muscles, and poor circulation which are often worse in the cold, and also ease symptoms of arthritis and menstrual cramps.
4. Layer up
Air is a good insulator. By wearing lots of layers you can trap air between them, reducing the transfer of heat away from your body. It’s better to wear several thin layers than one or two thick ones. A merino wool, silk or thermal long-sleeved, close-fitting vest is the perfect base. Add more woolen or fleecy layers on top to keep you toasty.
Take note: If you find yourself suddenly piling on the layers, and feeling cold all the time is something new for you, it’s worth considering whether there might be an underlying medical reason. Feeling cold can be a symptom of hypothyroidism; a condition affectingaround 3 in 100 people, with women ten times more likely to have it than men. It’s often diagnosed in middle age. In hypothyroidism, the thyroid gland is underactive and there are usually a variety of symptoms including weight gain, excessive tiredness or constipation. Muscle aches, low mood and feeling generally slow are common too. Speak to your GP or practice nurse if you think you may be affected. Hypothyroidism is diagnosed by a simple blood test and treatment is usually by daily medication to replace thyroid hormones.
5. Move frequently
When you exercise, your working muscles produce heat. If you’re feeling chilly, a five-minute brisk walk will quickly warm you up. Stride out, swing your arms and feel your heart and breathing rate increase. If you have a long day at your desk, then even a quick trip up the stairs to use the toilet on the next floor will help to raise your body temperature.
Take note: Exercise is a great way to get blood pumping around your body. The feel-good endorphins that your body releases during physical activity will boost your mood which is perfect if you’re someone who suffers with ‘winter depression’, also known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). For people with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) however, exercise can cause pain. In this medical condition, most common in long term smokers, arteries become gradually narrowed and blocked by fatty deposits. Blood flow to the legs is restricted and feet can feel cold and look pale. Without enough circulation to bring them the oxygen they need when walking, leg muscles cramp and force you to stop. It’s not normal to get pain in your legs every time you exercise so see your GP if this is happening to you, particularly if you are a smoker or have other health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol.
6. Take a shower
If you ever have that feeling that your bones are cold and you really can’t warm up, then hop in the shower. Let the warm water gradually raise your body temperature. Make sure you have your towel and clothes ready for afterwards so you don’t lose the heat you’ve gained.
Take note: Feeling cold to your bones is one of the symptoms of anaemia. Although your blood is pumping around your body, there just aren’t enough red blood cells to take sufficient oxygen to your body’s organs. In addition to feeling cold, anaemia can lead to breathlessness, low energy and palpitations. There are lots of different causes of anaemia including being low in iron which is needed to make red blood cells and having heavy menstrual periods. If you think you may be anaemic, speak to your doctor before starting yourself on any over the counter medications or supplements, it’s important to identify the cause and rule out any potentially serious conditions first.
7. Wear a hat
It’s a myth that you lose 50 per cent of your body heat through your head! It’s probably close to 10 per cent. However, wearing a hat or pulling up your hood to cover your head is a quick and easy way to retain a little more of your body heat.
Take note: It’s definitely worth taking ahat if you’re heading out for a night on the town or for outdoor drinks on a cold day. Alcohol is known to lower your body temperature. After that initial warm feeling and flush in your cheeks, when alcohol is widening your blood vessels, you’ll be more prone to getting the shivers. Extra blood in your superficial blood vessels allows them to lose heat to the air around them, cooling your skin. Eventually your core temperature starts to drop too. Drink sensibly and keep warm to avoid putting yourself at risk of hypothermia, a serious medical condition where the body temperature is too low for it to function properly.
