--- title: Low Thyroid: Why Am I Cold All the Time? description: The science behind your shivering canonical: https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/ author: Markham Heid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-01-28T13:04:17.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:48:03.025Z article:section: Health og:title: You Asked: Why Am I Cold All the Time? og:description: The science behind your shivering og:url: https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt97c253373d8961fa/69877c44428a9e01c3cc6d4d/you-asked-cold.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1500 og:image:height: 844 og:image:alt: you-asked-cold og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: You Asked: Why Am I Cold All the Time? twitter:description: The science behind your shivering twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt97c253373d8961fa/69877c44428a9e01c3cc6d4d/you-asked-cold.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Asked: Why Am I Cold All the Time? > Sponsored content. 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Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: Here’s Why You Always Feel Sicker at Night [Watch (HLS stream): Here’s Why You Always Feel Sicker at Night](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0D2Nw4Wc.m3u8) (1:30)  _Published 2019-02-07. Whether you’re dealing with the common cold, the flu or a stomach bug, you’ve probably noticed that your symptoms feel worse at night._ by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Jan 28, 2015 1:04 PM UTC  Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Jan 28, 2015 1:04 PM UTC Frigid weather isn’t solely to blame for your chill. Of course, frosty outdoor temperatures aren’t warming you up, either. Even if you’re layered in cozy sweaters and toasty corduroys, your hands and feet play an outsize role in determining how warm or cool you feel, explains Dr. Mike Tipton, a professor of human physiology at Portsmouth University in the UK. Tipton studies the human body’s response to extreme environments—like being dunked in icy water. He says the temperature of your hands and feet dominate your overall sensation of thermal comfort. “You can be warm, but if your hands and feet are cold, you will feel cold,” Tipton says. This is problematic for many women, who tend to have colder hands than men. A much-cited University of Utah study found that while the average woman’s core body temperature is a smidge above the average man’s, her hands are nearly three degrees cooler. Tipton says the hormone estrogen contributes to the cold sensitivity many women experience. Estrogen triggers the mechanism that shuts down blood flow to your extremities, he explains. For this reason, research has shown women tend to feel colder during the parts of their menstrual cycle when their estrogen levels spike. --- ### More from TIME --- Your metabolism and vascular function also play major parts when it comes to your internal thermostat. “Metabolism is a more complicated concept than it’s often portrayed,” says Dr. Anne Cappola, an endocrinologist at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. But in oversimplified terms, those with a high metabolism burn more calories and enjoy increased blood flow, both of which help heat you up, Cappola says. “The more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolism tends to be,” she explains. That’s another lucky break for guys, whose physiological makeup naturally endows them with more metabolism-boosting muscle—although women can counter that biological inequity with diet and exercise. ### QUIZ: Should You Eat This or That?  Which is better for you: Half cup of ice cream or 3 scoops of sorbet? Getty Images (4)  Answer: A half cup of ice cream If you eat what you’re craving, you’re more likely to feel satisfied and eat less. And scoop for scoop sorbet contains twice the sugar with none of the filling dairy protein and fat. Getty Images (5); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: Real butter or spray on fake butter? Getty Images; Tara Johnson for TIME  Answer: Butter Serving size for spray butters (even low-calorie ones) are around a 1/3 second spray. What on earth does that mean? You're better off using a small amount of real butter as opposed to guessing how much you're using of the mystery melange of up to 20 ingredients. Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: A turkey burger or a sirloin burger? Getty Images (2) ![Answer: Sirloin burger
Restaurant turkey burgers are often made with dark meat and the skin, so they’re not necessarily better for you \(and for the record, they aren't low-fat\). You can get a sirloin burger that’s 95% lean meat and gives you 20 g of protein. Just be careful with the toppings.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1b297940ae4e4e0/6986970ce53aba0cb54d318e/sirloin-burger.gif?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp) Answer: Sirloin burger Restaurant turkey burgers are often made with dark meat and the skin, so they’re not necessarily better for you (and for the record, they aren't low-fat). You can get a sirloin burger that’s 95% lean meat and gives you 20 g of protein. Just be careful with the toppings. Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: Almonds or pretzels? Getty Images (2)  Answer: Almonds Almonds are high in protein, fiber and fat and will keep you feeling fuller longer. Give high-sodium pretzels about an hour and you'll feel hungry again thanks to the high-carb no-fat or protein content. Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: Special K or eggs? AP; Getty Images  Answer: Eggs In the morning, you want a meal that will fill you up. Eggs offer protein and fat for satiety, but Special K cereal really only offers carbs and, well, air. If you want carbs to kick off the day, you're better off pairing eggs with a slice of 100% whole grain toast. Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: Fat free salad dressing or regular salad dressing? Tara Johnson for TIME  Answer: Regular salad dressingTo absorb fat soluble vitamins like Vitamins E and K in vegetables you need to consume them with a fat to aid nutrient absorption. Fat-free dressing, meanwhile, is low-calorie but gets its flavor from added sugar and salt. Tara Johnson for TIME (5); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: A low fat cookie or dark chocolate? Getty Images (2)  Answer: Dark chocolate “People believe fat free is calorie free,” says Keri Gans, a registered dietitian in New York City. “Go for the real thing.” Fat free cookies tend to be high in carbs, sugar and fake sugar. Try a nice piece of antioxidant-rich dark chocolate instead. Getty Images (2); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME  Which is better for you: Low fat Greek yogurt or 100 calorie Yoplait yogurt? Tara Johnson for TIME  Answer: 2% Greek YogurtA little fat is good in the morning to keep you full—plus it has upwards of 17g of protein per container. Fat-free "fruit" yogurt is high in sugar—7 to 10 g per serving—and lower in protein. Tara Johnson for TIME (2); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME Cappola says your thyroid also plays an important role in your metabolism and heat production. While the condition is not common, an underactive thyroid—also known as hypothyroidism—is more prevalent in women than in men, and can lead to the kind of drop in metabolic activity that would explain your constant sensation of coldness. There are many, many more explanations for why you may feel cold all the time, and nearly all of them have to do with poor blood circulation. Anything that messes with your vascular function—from diabetes to old age—will slow the amount of blood passing through your extremities, which in turn could cause you to feel cold, says Dr. Erika Schwartz, who’s written extensively about hormones and their role in how your feel. So what can you do if you’ve caught a perpetual chill? Start by moving more, Schwartz advises. Movement increases blood flow, which will warm you up. “Sitting at a desk for hours at a time would make anyone feel cold,” she says. A healthy diet and lifestyle are also essential to proper vascular function. Smoking, poor fitness, or anything else linked to bad blood flow could leave you hugging your shoulders and reaching for space heaters, Schwartz adds. She says a doctor can check your blood for signs of thyroid issues or any other health concerns that might explain your frequent shivering. You could also embrace the cold. Tipton’s work has shown people have a built-in ability to acclimatize to cold temperatures, which is why you may feel colder in late fall and early winter than toward the end of the snowy season. (This also explains why you can comfortably bust out shorts and a T-shirt on that first 65-degree spring day, while the same thermostat reading would send you hunting for jeans and a sweater in late summer.) If all else fails, Tipton says, just remember: warm gloves and thick socks are your friends. _Read next:_ [_You Asked: Is Sleeping In a Cold Room Better For You?_](http://time.com/3602415/sleep-problems-room-temperature/?xid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/"},"headline":"You Asked: Why Am I Cold All the Time?","datePublished":"2015-01-28T13:04:17.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:48:03.025Z","description":"The science behind your shivering","url":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/","keywords":["Research","You Asked"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt97c253373d8961fa/69877c44428a9e01c3cc6d4d/you-asked-cold.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Markham Heid","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/markham-heid/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt97c253373d8961fa/69877c44428a9e01c3cc6d4d/you-asked-cold.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"you-asked-cold","caption":"","creditText":"Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/research/","name":"Research"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/","name":"You Asked: Why Am I Cold All the Time?"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Here’s Why You Always Feel Sicker at Night","description":"Whether you’re dealing with the common cold, the flu or a stomach bug, you’ve probably noticed that your symptoms feel worse at night.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/0D2Nw4Wc/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2019-02-07T15:31:38.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0D2Nw4Wc.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/","duration":"PT1M30S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3685138/cold-all-the-time/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```