cold hands and extremeties

[gonelifting]

My wife has had this problem forever. If it`s slightly cold outside or snow her hands would turn blue/purple and become VERY painful. She is ALWAYS generally cold. Is there anything that this is caused from? diet? physically? thyroid???

She stopped working out a few years ago, average weight now. Also I don`t know if this is important but she is VERY sensitive to lots of foods like spicy foods and foods that don`t digest well. Any info would be appreciated. also on bc

 

[The Shadow]

Get thyroid panel.

 

[Spook]

sensitivity to spicy foods woudn't matter

The sensitivity to spicy foods is common with a lot of people. You may want her to at least check her gall bladder for the spicy food thing just to be safe.

For the cold hands and extremities, that is somewhat common in some respects but maybe not to the point of turning blue. With the hands and feet, those blood vessels are at the farthest points from the heart and very close to the surface of the body. It isn't uncommon for the hands to get extremely cold and sometimes blue in color, but I'd consider it to me more of a circulation problem than thyroid.

If she dropped out of the gym and she is back to normal or average weight I'd assume her thyroid is normal, but when does she get the cold blue hands and extremities? Is it when she is outside in the cold without gloves? Or is it anytime the weather turns cold and she is inside the house with the thermostat set to normal? If its inside the house with a normal indoor temp, I'd consider part circulation and part hypochondria to an extent. If its outside, it may be normal for her.

I'd probably be more concerned with circulation than thyroid.

 

[gonelifting]

Re: sensitivity to spicy foods woudn't matter

The sensitivity to spicy foods is common with a lot of people. You may want her to at least check her gall bladder for the spicy food thing just to be safe.

For the cold hands and extremities, that is somewhat common in some respects but maybe not to the point of turning blue. With the hands and feet, those blood vessels are at the farthest points from the heart and very close to the surface of the body. It isn't uncommon for the hands to get extremely cold and sometimes blue in color, but I'd consider it to me more of a circulation problem than thyroid.

If she dropped out of the gym and she is back to normal or average weight I'd assume her thyroid is normal, but when does she get the cold blue hands and extremities? Is it when she is outside in the cold without gloves? Or is it anytime the weather turns cold and she is inside the house with the thermostat set to normal? If its inside the house with a normal indoor temp, I'd consider part circulation and part hypochondria to an extent. If its outside, it may be normal for her.

I'd probably be more concerned with circulation than thyroid.

About the spicy foods, I just threw that in there thought it would help.
Her hands get cold ALL the time, of course when she`s outside it`s more... It could be in a room 72 degrees and you feel her hands... COLD. Shes an Occupational Therapist and when she touches her patients (they all know by now) they have to "brace" for the "cold hands". So it`s pretty much ALL THE TIME. but they don`t turn blue in normal room, ONLY outside and COLD weather.

I thought it may be circulation and I THOUGHT that you could improve it by excercising and cardio, I could be wrong I`m just guessing. So she used to do CARDIO for about 45 minutes to an HOUR several days a week along with weights but that did`nt help. That`s why I`m thinking it`s something else.

This is happening for years so it`s not a REAL emergency, but it would be nice to know what`s wrong and I think it would help with other problems/functions. Thanks for the replies.
I will add that I tried giving her NYC and tried EC but that did`nt agree with her ( I hope it was a dosage problem) I thought it would help "speed up" her body and "warm" her up. lol any opinions?

 

[badgrrl]

What's her average blood pressure and pulse rate? It sounds like low blood pressure, poor circulation or a combination of both. Has she informed her physician of this?

 

[gonelifting]

I THINK she had low blood pressure in the past. I think she told her docter but never checked for anything. What does low blood pressure do? How can that be fixed or what causes it? THAT may be it. Thanks
Of course she`s got to get checked out but I`d like to be steered in the right direction from here first.

 

[Gladiola]

Cold extremities could be Reynaud's Syndrome.

 

[badgrrl]

Low blood pressure could cause poor circulation. Use of EC usually causes an increase in BP. If that had no positive effect, I suggest that she consult her physician. There are prescription meds that can restore your BP to a normal range. There may even be other (non-prescription) alternatives.

But again, the best advice I can offer is to check w/her primary care physician.

This is quite common in women. I used to manage a physician's office and I saw this on a regular basis.

Hope everything works out!

 

[wyst]

Cold extremities could be Reynaud's Syndrome.

Yep. My mom has that, and I do to a lesser extent. She can turn blue easily if she's not careful. It's not a nice thing to have.

xoxo

Wyst

 

[gonelifting]

THANKS EVERYONE FOR ALL THE REPLIES. I think it runs in her family. She has/had low iron too.

I was so impressed with the EC and NYC that I gave it to her but she did`nt respond well at the time. BUT IT COULD HAVE BEEN OTHER FACTORS. So I will try again soon. I have to get the dosage right.