Feeling Colder Than Everyone Else
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You put on another jumper while everyone else seems perfectly comfortable. The room is not particularly cold, yet you find yourself reaching for a blanket, turning up the heat, or keeping your hands tucked into your pockets.
Occasionally feeling cold is completely normal. But if you have started feeling noticeably colder than you used to, particularly if it happens regularly, it is worth paying attention to rather than automatically blaming the weather or getting older.
One possible explanation is anaemia. Healthify lists cold hands and feet among the symptoms that can occur alongside anaemia, which can also cause tiredness, dizziness, breathlessness, or a racing heartbeat. A blood test can help determine whether anaemia is present and investigate its possible cause.
Your thyroid can also affect how warm you feel. An underactive thyroid can slow several body functions and may cause symptoms including feeling cold most of the time, tiredness, weight gain, constipation, and dry skin. Thyroid function can be assessed with blood tests if your healthcare provider thinks it may be contributing to your symptoms.
There are simpler explanations, too. A cooler home, lighter clothing, not eating enough, reduced activity, or spending more time sitting can all leave you feeling chilly. Some people also notice particularly cold fingers or toes during sudden changes in temperature. Raynaud’s syndrome, for example, can cause fingers or toes to become cold, numb, and change colour.
The important thing is a change from your usual pattern. If you have become persistently more sensitive to cold, especially alongside unusual tiredness, breathlessness, dizziness, weight changes, or changes in your skin or hair, mention it to your GP.
You do not need to diagnose the cause yourself. Simply noticing that your body’s thermostat seems to have changed can be useful information. Sometimes a small observation is exactly what prompts the right conversation with your healthcare provider.
