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The Doctors Book of Home Remedies II: Cold Hands and Feet

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Cold Hands and Feet

Everyone expects to feel chilly when Jack Frost starts nipping. But if you feel a severe chill just from opening your refrigerator door or walking into an air-conditioned room, it's a good bet you have Raynaud's disease.

Actually, disease is too big a word for this baffling ailment. Everyone gets cold hands and feet sometimes, especially during winter. The big difference is that those with Raynaud's lose some blood circulation in their outer extremities at the slightest change in temperature. The fingers and toes turn white or take on a bluish tinge as they get colder. They may feel painful or numb. When they warm again, they become red as the blood returns and may throb with pain for a few minutes to several hours, depending on the severity of the reaction.

Raynaud's may be the result of overactive blood vessels, disorders of the connective tissue or emotional upsets. But whatever the cause, those feelings of chilliness or numbness are truly uncomfortable. So here are some ways to give your blood flow a little nudge and to get your extremity temp closer to normal.

When to See the Doctor

Raynaud's disease is usually a mild condition that doesn't require a doctor's care, according to experts. In advanced stages, however, it can weaken the fingers and dangerously damage your sense of touch. And in some cases, the symptoms may be a sign of nerve damage or another disease. So if you notice that your fingers feel weaker or the condition worsens, be sure to seek professional care.

Become a swinger. You can warm your hands with a simple arm-swinging exercise, says Donald McIntyre, M.D., a dermatologist in Rutland, Vermont. Pretend you're a softball pitcher, but keep your fingers, wrist and elbow straight while swinging your arm in windmill fashion. The recommended speed is about 80 twirls per minute, but any windmill speed will boost blood flow to those tingling digits.

Get heavy into herring. Fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids--such as mackerel, herring, salmon and anchovies--help reduce the painful blood vessel spasms that cause the shutdown of blood flow. So eat plenty of these cold-water fish to ease the pain of Raynaud's or other circulatory problems due to cold weather or emotional stress. An added bonus: These fish also help cut triglycerides, a factor that contributes to heart disease.

Iron up. Fact number one: A woman's core body temperature is one or two degrees lower than a man's. Fact number two: Women are more likely to have cold hands and feet (whether due to Raynaud's or not). One reason for the lower average body temperature is that many women are iron-deficient, according to Henry C. Lukaski, Ph.D., a supervisory research physiologist at the U. S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Lack of iron can alter your thyroid hormone metabolism, which regulates body heat generation. Women who are aware of this try to consume the recommended 18 milligrams of iron a day, but even so, iron stores are depleted during menstruation.

If your body iron is low, greater iron consumption translates into more body heat, which is a good way to counteract cold hands and feet. So look for good sources of absorbable iron, such as clams, tofu, Cream of Wheat cereal, poultry, fish, lean red meat, lentils and green leafy vegetables. (With vegetables and legumes, make sure you drink plenty of orange juice, because vitamin C increases the body's ability to absorb the type of iron in these foods.)

Give your feet a powder. Dampness leads to chilliness, so try to keep chilly parts dry. "Absorbent foot powders are excellent for helping keep feet dry," says Marc A. Brenner, D.P.M., past president of the American Society of Podiatric Dermatology. He recommends using foot powder on a regular basis, even sprinkling it between the toes.

Dress for Success

There's no secret about the best way to keep warm in cold weather. Go for great covering, and never mind glamour. Among the most important items:

Wear a hat. You lose more body heat from the top of your head than anywhere else, so cover your noggin with a warm hat, advises John Abruzzo, M.D., director of the Division of Rheumatology and professor of medicine at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Wool is best, but any fabric is better than nothing.

Go synthetic. The best way to keep warm is by dressing in layers. The inner layers should be synthetic or "blend" fabrics that transport perspiration away from the body (Cotton or wool blends are also good, but avoid 100 percent cotton and other threads that absorb perspiration.) Wool is a good choice for outer layers because it traps heat. The outermost layer should be of a wind-resistant, water-repellent but breathable material. And wear loose-fitting garments, because tight clothes can cut circulation.

Choose mittens over gloves. Experienced skiers know that mittens are warmer because they trap the heat from the entire hand better than gloves, which cover each finger individually.

Cover your feet with blends. All-cotton socks can soak up perspiration and chill your feet, so wear polypropylene or polyester blend socks, which help transport moisture away from your skin.

Train yourself with a warm soak. It may sound obvious, but placing your hands in warm water before venturing into the cold weather helps keep blood flowing to your fingertips. Murray Hamlet, D.V.M., director of the Plans and Operations Division at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine in Natick, Massachusetts, devised this exercise for troops in Alaska: Place your hands in a container of water heated to 104° to 107°F (hot water from the tap) for two to five minutes while you're sitting in a comfortable room. Then go to a cold area-preferably someplace outdoors-and place your hands in 104° to 107° water for ten minutes. Then repeat the two- to five-minute indoor hot soak again.

While the cold environment normally makes your peripheral blood vessels constrict, the sensation of the warm water makes them open. When you repeatedly get the blood vessels to open despite the cold, you are effectively "training" your hands to counter the constriction reflex. After 50 treatments, Dr. Hamlet says, most people can go into the cold without losing circulation in their hands.

Scorn cigarettes--even their secondhand smoke. Cigarette smoke adds to circulation problems by narrowing the blood vessels of the fingers and toes and therefore decreasing blood flow, according to Jay D. Coffman, M.D., chief of peripheral vascular medicine at Boston University Hospital. These effects can be especially hard on people with Raynaud's. In fact, if you have Raynaud's, it's even a good idea to stay away from other people who are smoking.

Watch what (and how much) you drink. Dehydration aggravates chills by reducing your blood volume, so be sure to drink at least eight ounces of water, cider, herbal tea or broth before venturing outdoors--and as much when you return indoors. But stay away from coffee and other caffeinated products, because they constrict blood vessels and can interfere with your circulation. And forget about hot toddies--alcohol's "warming" effect is only temporary and actually lowers your body temperature.

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