If your hands are forever freezing, then science may finally have found the explanation – and, no, it has nothing to do with that ‘cold hands, warm heart’ cliché, unfortunately…
Nope, according to new research by scientists at the University of Cambridge, the real reason could all be down to how much muscle you have.
In the study, published this week in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, the team found that people with more muscle mass are less susceptible to heat loss and also warm up more quickly – which could explain why women are more likely to suffer from cold hands than men.
The scientists concluded this after getting 114 participants to plunge their hands into cold water for three minutes.
Using thermal imaging cameras, they then studied how quickly the volunteers’ hands heated up, and compared this with their vital stats, including their body composition of fat and muscle.
‘Hands have a large surface area-to-volume ratio, which can be a challenge to maintaining thermal balance in cold conditions,’ said lead author Stephanie Payne in a release.
‘We wanted to study the influence of body size and body composition on heat loss and rewarming in the hands to determine whether they affect hand temperature and dexterity in cold conditions.’
She continued: ‘We always thought that fat (acting as insulation) was the most crucial factor in thermoregulation, but it’s actually muscle playing the vital role. The body is this amazing, dynamic system which uses muscle to generate heat to keep the rest of the body warm, including your hands.’
Payne concluded that women and kids are more likely to get cold extremities…
‘Being aware of the effects of body composition on how cold your hands get is crucial,’ she said. ‘For example, women and children are less likely to have a high muscle mass so cold-weather gear, such as gloves, should be produced and marketed with that in mind.’
So, now we know… And if your fingers are always freezing, then we reckon it might be time to hit the gym…
