Why Do I Feel Cold All The Time?

28 Mar Why Do I Feel Cold All The Time?

Posted at 11:27h in Advice by

Do you find yourself feeling cold, whatever the weather? If you’re always the one shivering while everyone else is in shorts and t-shirts, there might be an underlying cause. From low iron levels to an underactive thyroid, this article outlines the most common reasons you might be feeling cold all the time (and how to tackle them).

WHY DO YOU FEEL COLD ALL THE TIME?

There are a number of reasons that you might be struggling to stay warm, but the good news is that you can take steps to rectify or improve the underlying issue. Here are five reasons your might be feeling cold more often than not.

POOR CIRCULATION

Your circulatory system sends blood, nutrients and oxygen around the body and when this is not functioning efficiently you may experience symptoms including feeling cold. Poor circulation is not a standalone condition, so it’s important to identify the underlying cause.

FIX IT: Conditions including obesity, diabetes and heart conditions are all possible underlying causes of compromised circulation. Visit your GP, who is likely to discuss your family history and may run appropriate diagnostic tests.

LOW IRON LEVELS

Having low iron levels can lead to a deficiency known as anemia, which can lead to your system not making enough red blood cells to carry oxygen around the body. A tendency to feel cold, particularly having cold hands and feet, is a symptom. Other symptoms to watch out for include fatigue, having irregular heartbeats and looking pale.

FIX IT: Make sure your diet contains sources of iron such as good quality, ideally organic red meat, pulses (beans and lentils) and vegetables like cabbage, broccoli and spinach. Consider taking a good quality dietary supplement.

UNDERACTIVE THYROID

The thyroid is a gland that helps to regulate your metabolism, and if it doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormone, or the body does not process the hormone effectively, it can lead to hypothyroidism. Having an underactive thyroid can lead to you feeling constantly cold. Other symptoms include thinning hair, fatigue, weight gain, dry skin and constipation. 

FIX IT: If you believe you may have hypothyroidism the first step is to speak to your doctor. Bear in mind that standard NHS testing for underactive thyroid is very simplistic and often doesn’t give a full picture. Consider working with a functional medicine doctor or a qualified nutritionist who specialises in thyroid health who can run a comprehensive test that includes thyroid antibodies. There are treatments available to manage the condition.

DIABETES

Diabetes is a disease where the body is unable to produce or process insulin correctly, which leads to elevated blood sugar levels unless well managed. This can lead to neuropathy (nerve damage) and means you may feel cold, particularly in the feet, which may not feel cold to touch. Other symptoms include feeling thirsty, frequent urination, feeling tired and wounds taking longer to heal.

FIX IT: If you believe you could be diabetic you should visit your GP and seek a diagnosis. Type 2 diabetes can be managed through a combination of medication and dietary improvements.

BEING UNDERWEIGHT

Being underweight can also impact your body temperature. If you are underweight, your body not only lacks adequate levels of body fat to insulate you, your metabolic rate may slow meaning you will create less body heat. Weight loss can occur for many reasons so it’s very important to seek help from your doctor if you have unexplained weight loss. If you are purposefully restricting food to the point at which you’ve become underweight, it may be that you have an eating disorder known as anorexia, which often results in the sufferer to feeling cold all the time. Symptoms of this illness include constant worrying about your weight and being more than 15% below the typical body weight for your height.

FIX IT: If you are concerned that you may be suffering from anorexia, speak to your doctor or contact the charity Beat for support.

If you’d like tailored health, nutrition and lifestyle advice from a qualified nutritionist, contact us to arrange your complimentary consultation. We can talk through your health challenges and decide together whether one of our programmes is right for you.

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LINDA ROBINSON

Linda is our Practice Coordinator, helping to keep the clinic running smoothly.

 

Originally from Texas, Linda completed her MBA at SDA Bocconi in Milan. Linda has worked as a Strategy Consultant across multiple industries globally in cities including Kyoto, Paris, Chicago and San Francisco. She developed an interest in nutrition whilst volunteering for an organisation that provides cooking and nutrition education to children and families.

Linda is now settled in London with her husband, two children, and her very bouncy, sociable dog.

SARAH LAW

Sarah has worked with hundreds of clients over the past decade to help them live in a healthy body that they feel confident in.


Sarah spent a large part of her teens and 20’s as a professional dancer battling with orthorexia and an unhealthy relationship with food and her body. This created a desire to understand the human body more so she could finally cut through the confusion and end the cycle of yoyo dieting. This fuelled her passion to help other women do the same.

 

Sarah specialises in supporting women who are struggling to lose weight due to underlying health issues. She’s helped many women manage their weight during and after the menopause, as well as clients with thyroid disease and immune system dysfunction. Sarah loves food and sharing healthy recipes with her clients. Her aim is to ensure that clients don’t feel deprived and instead, achieve their weight loss and health goals in a positive and sustainable way.

 

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AILSA HICHENS

 

Ailsa is one of our most experienced practitioners. She specialises in helping clients to lose weight, develop a healthy relationship with food and finally feel comfortable in their skin. Ailsa’s mission is for everyone she works with to enjoy the journey and that working with a nutritionist should not be a punishment, but your access to a new possibility.

 

Ailsa is not only an experienced weight loss nutritionist, she is also a skilled coach. She helps our clients overcome emotional eating, destructive habits and self-sabotaging behaviours that have prevented successful weight loss in the past. Ailsa has spent years in clinic working with clients who have experienced yo-yo dieting and have discovered that long term weight loss is not just about eating less until you can stand it no longer.

 

Working with Ailsa you will be comprehensively supported, not only in improving your nutrition and lifestyle, but also your eating habits and your relationship with food. When you work on all these elements together, the results can be truly astonishing.

 

To enquire about working with Ailsa, please contact us.

Test Nikki is our Practice Manager, managing our team of practitioners and heading up the day-to-day running of the business. Nikki is involved in the strategic development of our practice, coming from a strong business background in town planning. A Florida girl, Nikki relocated to the UK in 2014 with her husband and two children.

NIKKI ANDRIANI

Nikki is our Practice Manager, managing our team and heading up the day-to-day running of our clinic.

 

Coming from a background in town planning, Nikki is involved in the strategic development of our practice, continually ensuring we are delivering the very best service to our clients.


A Florida girl, Nikki relocated to the UK in 2014 where she lives with her husband, two children, and her rescue dog Skyy.

STÉPHANIE ACHAR

Stéphanie is a skilled nutritional therapist and functional medicine practitioner with additional training in eating disorders, disordered eating and obesity. She believes that working towards both physiological and mental health is key in achieving optimum wellbeing.

 

Stéphanie’s personal experience of emotional eating and the ongoing struggle to find the right support led her to combine the science of nutrition with behavioural coaching to motivate and empower her clients. She specialises in helping people who struggle with their weight and their relationship with food. She helps them develop a healthier and more peaceful relationship with food and their bodies.

 

To enquire about working with Stéphanie, please contact us.

INNA WEARN

Inna is passionate about supporting women on their journey to improved health and wellbeing. She believes that the solution to effective weight loss does not lie in ever more restrictive diets, but a more sophisticated approach that optimises health and vitality, as well as promoting effective weight loss.

 

Working with Inna you will benefit from her in-depth knowledge of female health and hormones. She will support you in developing a healthy diet, lifestyle and mindset that ensures you reach your ideal weight and maintain it in the years to come.

 

Inna is passionate about food with a wide repertoire of delicious healthy recipes and meal ideas to ensure your weight loss journey is as enjoyable as possible!

 

To enquire about working with Inna, please contact us.

ANIA MASON

 

Ania is a firm believer that improving your health and losing weight should be a positive, empowering journey, not one centred around deprivation.

 

After being diagnosed with two autoimmune conditions in her twenties, Ania spent several years educating herself on the power of food and nutrition. She put it all into practise and changed her diet and lifestyle, reversing her endometriosis and thyroid disease. After experiencing such a significant improvement in her health, Ania had a big desire to help others. She embarked on a four year journey to study nutrition, graduating from the Institute for Optimum Nutrition with distinction.

 

Ania specialises in autoimmunity and works with clients who have underlying health issues preventing successful weight loss. Her expertise enables her to successfully support our clients with conditions such as hypothyroidsm (underactive thyroid), PCOS and diabetes. 

 

To enquire about working with Ania, please contact us.

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