In my experience the person who’s perpetually cold is always a mom. The moms seem to be the ones always under a blanket, always a little chilly, and when it comes to thermostat politics, she controls the thermostat. So you make sure she’s comfortable, that’s how it works. But sometimes the chill isn’t just preference, it’s the body flagging something, and a handful of nutrient shortfalls are the usual suspects.
Iron Comes First
“If you’re feeling tired, short of breath, and generally run down, you might have iron deficiency anemia, meaning you don’t have enough iron to make healthy red blood cells, which are the blood cells that carry oxygen around the body,” says Doctor O’Donovan. It hides in stranger symptoms too. “Have you ever craved ice? If you have, you probably should have your iron levels checked,” says family physician Dr. Jen Caudle. “This is actually an example of something called pica… sometimes people crave other non-food substances, things like clay, paper, dirt, chalk. This is a real thing, and it’s a relatively common symptom of iron deficiency.”
For my part, I run more cold than hot. I find myself getting overly chilly when other people aren’t even that cool. Something can just sort of hit you, you know. I don’t know if it’s humidity-based or what, something physical, you just never know.
The Other Four to Check
After iron, the one I’ve watched up close is B12. My mom got diagnosed with low B12 to the point where she was actually not recognizing people she knew. She had to go get a B12 shot, which immediately fixed it. It sounds dramatic, but that’s how much this particular deficiency can affect the brain when it goes far enough, and how fast repletion can turn it around. B12, like iron, is tied to making the red blood cells that move oxygen and heat around the body.
Round out the list with three more: vitamin D, which supports the thyroid signaling and circulation that govern body temperature; iodine, which the thyroid literally can’t make its heat-regulating hormones without; and magnesium, the cofactor that quietly props up the other four. A simple blood panel covers iron (ferritin), B12, vitamin D, and thyroid function, which is the conversation worth having if “always cold” is your normal.
One honest caveat to all of this, though. Wintertime, I like to double bundle up. I’ve spent time in Montreal, and my first winter there it hit negative sixty-five, which is unreal, Fahrenheit and Celsius meet at minus forty and below that you’re just beyond cold. Things start to freeze the moment you walk outside. The point being, everybody’s cold there no matter how much B12 or iron or vitamin D they have. “Always cold” is a signal worth checking, but a real winter is still a real winter.
Christine Morgan is a Registered and Licensed Dietitian who currently practices in dialysis. Her experience includes renal nutrition, food service, and geriatrics. Her education includes a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, and she completed her Dietetic Internship with the University of Delaware. She is also a member of the Tri-State Renal Dietitians Association.
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