Cold extremities: what do they mean and what are their causes?

Cold extremities can be a sign of problems with blood vessels or even problems with thermoregulation, which is regulated by hormonal and nervous influences.

Environmental influences

If a person is exposed to a cold environment or environmental influences for a long time, there is a natural drop in temperature in the extremities. For example, in Raynaud's syndrome, there is a lack of blood supply to the extremities even after a short exposure to cold.

As well as movement in cold environments, cold extremities result in lack of exercise. Sedentary lifestyle, sedentary work or standing in one place for long periods of time.

With a lack of nutrients

Thermoregulation disorders are sometimes caused by nutrient deficiencies. Especially iron and B vitamin deficiencies. This also occurs in anorexia, for example. Anorexia is a mental eating disorder where a person tries to keep their weight as low as possible, either by refusing food or by extreme weight loss.

It most commonly affects girls under the age of 18. The disease is associated with heart rhythm disturbances and low blood pressure, which results in a decrease in blood flow to the extremities of the body and therefore a cooling of the body.

What diseases can be behind cold extremities?

Cold extremities can also occur in diseases that accompany vascular problems or heart problems. Heart diseases also affect overall thermoregulation.

Cold extremities, especially cold lower extremities, occur in a congenital heart disease called aortic coarctation. The main symptom is high blood pressure in the upper half of the body and low blood pressure in the lower half.

So the person's feet especially get cold. The disease is caused by narrowing of the aorta, which is the main artery leading out of the heart. It flows blood throughout the body. Sometimes it also affects the large blood vessels.

Hypotension(low blood pressure) is also a problem. Typical symptoms of low blood pressure are frequent dizziness, impaired concentration, excessive sleepiness, muscle weakness and sometimes fainting.

Low blood pressure can be caused by insufficient pumping of blood from the heart to the arteries or by improper regulation of blood vessels that cannot regulate resistance to blood. Thus, in hypotension, it is difficult to push blood to distant blood vessels, which is why cold extremities are a symptom.

Ischaemic disease of the lower limbs

Very often, problems with cold feet occur with ischaemic disease of the lower limbs. This is a disease that affects the arteries. The permeability of the arteries narrows and may even close, which in turn causes problems with blood flow.

The limb, which is under such closure, ceases to be adequately supplied with blood and other nutrients. Typical symptoms are leg pain, dry skin and a cold limb, which manifests itself gradually.

Dangerously, the limb may become bloody due to tissue death. If this occurs, amputation of the affected limb is necessary to prevent the spread of inflammation beyond the capped vessel. Early examination is important to prevent the loss of the limb.

Symptoms of limb necrosis are:

• Pain
• Pallor
• paresthesia, a tingling sensation
• paralysis
• absence of a pulse in the arteries of the lower limbs
• coldness

Risk factors for developing:

• Smoking
• high-fat diet
• Age
• lack of exercise
• stress
• diabetes
• genetic factors
• high blood pressure
• high blood lipids
• high uric acid in the blood
• high levels of fibrin in the blood
• high homocysteine in the blood

Anaemia and cold extremities

Cold extremities also occur in anaemia. This is especially the case if there is a deficiency of red blood cells and haemoglobin in the bloodstream. Haemoglobin is a blood pigment that binds oxygen to itself.

In anaemia, a person is pale, tired and has reduced performance. In older people, the disease can also cause confusion. Most often, therefore, cold extremities are caused by the blood circulation, which greatly affects both their supply and thermoregulation.

Other diseases

Cold limbs can be the result of thyroid disease(hypothyroidism), kidney disease, adrenal disease(Addison's disease), lupus and diabetes. Scleroderma can also be a cause.

Stress and cold extremities are a known association. Mainly due to constriction of blood vessels in the extremities. This is how the body prepares enough blood for the vital organs.

Fever and cold extremities in children

Fever is the designation of a body temperature above 38.5 degrees C. Body temperature should be kept below 38.5 degrees C, and not only in children. Above this limit, it is a burden on the whole organism.

It increases the strain on the heart and circulatory system. Consequently, it results in impaired (insufficient) blood supply to the extremities, i.e. the limbs. Despite the fever, the limbs are pale and cold.