You may get cold easily due to certain health conditions, including anemia, dehydration, or vitamin deficiency. Treatment can depend on the cause.

Everyone’s body has a slightly different reaction to cold, and some people feel cold more often than others. This is called cold intolerance.

Always feeling cold can happen for a number of reasons, and these potential causes can involve a range of different symptoms. You might consider some symptoms no more than minor annoyances, but others might happen as a sign of a more serious underlying condition.

If you feel cold all the time despite layering up and taking other steps to stay warm, you could have an underlying condition that’s causing this feeling.

Read on to learn why you might always feel cold, plus get some guidance on how to address this discomfort.

Anemia, in basic terms, means you don’t have enough healthy red blood cells. This common condition might develop when:

  • your body doesn’t make enough red blood cells
  • your body destroys these cells
  • you experience heavy bleeding

Anemia can be severe, especially if it’s long lasting.

Iron deficiency anemia, the most common type of anemia, can develop when your body doesn’t have the iron it needs to make enough healthy red blood cells. Causes include:

If you live with anemia, you might need to take iron supplements or make some changes in your diet to treat your condition. Severe anemia might require a blood transfusion. Your doctor can also help treat any condition causing the anemia.

Symptoms

Symptoms of anemia can depend on the underlying cause, but they often include:

With hypothyroidism, your thyroid gland doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone to allow your body to use and regulate the energy it needs to operate. This condition can become serious if not treated. There’s no cure, but medication can help reduce and control your symptoms.

Your care team will typically prescribe replacement thyroid hormones, such as levothyroxine (Levoxyl, Synthroid), to treat your condition.

Symptoms

Symptoms of hypothyroidism vary but often include:

Atherosclerosis is when plaque buildup narrows blood vessels. There are several different types, but peripheral artery disease most commonly causes a cold feeling. Peripheral artery disease is the narrowing of arteries that carry blood to your limbs, organs, and head.

Lifestyle changes, including dietary changes and exercise, can help treat this condition. However, if a serious artery blockage is present, surgery may be necessary.

Symptoms

Other symptoms include:

  • pain, numbness, and cramping in your legs, buttocks, and feet after activity
  • a weak pulse in your legs and feet
  • slow healing of wounds on your legs and feet
  • a bluish tint to the skin
  • decreased hair growth on your legs
  • decreased toenail growth

Raynaud’s disease, or Raynaud’s phenomenon, is a rare condition that causes your blood vessels — usually in your fingers and toes — to narrow when you get cold or stressed.

The affected area may become pale or blue and feel cold since blood can’t travel there as it typically would. When the blood comes back, the area turns red and often throbs.

The cause of primary Raynaud’s disease is unknown. Secondary Raynaud’s disease can happen due to injury or an underlying condition.

Raynaud’s disease is most common in:

  • women
  • people older than 30
  • people who live in cold climates
  • people with a family history of the condition

If you live with Raynaud’s disease, lifestyle changes, such as frequent exercise, can help you stay warm and lower stress.

Diabetes can cause kidney and circulation issues that make you feel cold. Without proper treatment, diabetes can also cause nerve damage that makes you feel cold, particularly in your feet.

Type 2 diabetes may involve milder symptoms than type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is also more likely to cause a cold feeling.

If you have diabetes, you can manage your blood sugar with a balanced diet and exercise. In some cases, you might need medication, such as insulin. It’s also important to take good care of your feet, which can involve keeping them warm.

Symptoms

Other symptoms of diabetes include:

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by an intense fear of gaining weight and a distorted perception of your own weight.

While some people with anorexia might have an unusually low body weight and severely restrict their food intake, not everyone with this eating disorder will appear thin or underweight.

This condition requires treatment from a trained professional. Treatment typically includes both therapy and nutritional care. Severe anorexia may require inpatient treatment.

Symptoms

Symptoms of anorexia nervosa include:

You may also experience emotional and behavioral symptoms, such as:

Low body weight refers to a body mass index (BMI) below 18.5. Often, having a lower BMI means your body isn’t insulated with fat, so it can’t keep you as warm.

Sometimes, low body weight happens due to an underlying cause, such as hyperthyroidism. If that’s the case for you, you’ll probably notice other related symptoms.

Low body weight can also lead to:

  • a weakened immune system
  • nutritional deficiencies
  • fertility challenges, especially for people with uteruses

A nutritionist can help you develop a personalized plan to help you gain weight by eating nourishing foods and getting regular physical activity.

Poor circulation occurs when blood flow to the limbs is reduced. It typically relates to other health conditions, such as diabetes and heart conditions.

Other possible signs include:

  • tingling and numbness in your limbs and extremities (hands and feet)
  • pain in limbs
  • muscle cramps

Treatment generally involves treating the underlying cause, but items like compression stockings may also be beneficial.

A vitamin B12 deficiency can happen when you either can’t absorb B12 or don’t get enough of it through your diet. It most commonly affects people who:

  • follow a vegan diet
  • are 50 years or older
  • have had gastrointestinal surgery
  • have digestive issues

Symptoms

Symptoms include:

  • constipation or diarrhea
  • fatigue
  • shortness of breath
  • loss of appetite
  • pale or yellow appearance
  • irritability
  • shortness of breath
  • anemia
  • loss of balance
  • tingling and numbness in your limbs
  • weakness

Many people get enough vitamin B12 by eating animal products, including meat, fish, and dairy. However, this essential vitamin can also be obtained from fortified vegan products and supplements.

Feeling cold all the time can also happen as a potential side effect of beta-blockers, medications that treat high blood pressure and other cardiovascular issues.

Other possible side effects of beta-blockers include:

  • fatigue
  • dizziness
  • nausea

Priyanka Costa Hennis, MD, a fellow in medicine/clinical informatics at the University of Arizona, notes a few other medications that may cause you to feel cold, including:

Consider speaking with your prescribing doctor or clinician, who can offer guidance on adjusting your dose or finding an alternative medication.

That said, 2018 research notes that medication side effects most likely aren’t the main cause of your coldness.

Your body needs to stay hydrated to function properly, so you should replenish your fluids during the day.

“When you are dehydrated, your body causes constriction of the blood vessels in order to conserve the water in the body,” Hennis said. She explained that it’s particularly important to remember to drink enough water during the winter — it’s easy to forget when you don’t sweat as much.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that recommended guidelines for water intake can depend on several factors, including age, gender, and whether you’re pregnant or lactating.

A healthcare professional may recommend rehydrating by drinking plenty of water and a low-sugar sports drink that contains electrolytes. They may prescribe intravenous (IV) fluids if you can’t keep fluids down.

Hennis recommends drinking at least 50 ounces, or about 6 cups, of water daily.

A constant cold sensation might simply leave you feeling cold all over. You might also notice:

  • tingling or numbness in your hands, fingers, feet, and toes
  • frequent shivering
  • discomfort at temperatures others find comfortable
  • stiffness in your limbs
  • particularly cold hands and feet

If your coldness has an underlying cause, you might also notice some symptoms related to that condition.

A doctor or other healthcare professional can help determine whether you feel cold due to an underlying medical condition, or if you simply have a lower cold tolerance.

To get more information about your medical history and any possible health concerns, a healthcare professional might ask:

  • What are your symptoms, and when did they start?
  • Has your cold intolerance changed over time?
  • What kind of diet do you eat?
  • How is your general health?
  • Have you started any new medications or had any other health changes recently?

They’ll likely also conduct a physical exam, including taking your height and weight.

Depending on your other symptoms, they may also order blood tests to check your:

Feeling cold constantly is uncomfortable, but you do have options for warming up, including these expert-backed tips and tricks.

If you’re always cold, you can warm up by wrapping up in a blanket, adding more clothing layers, or turning up the heat.

When these strategies don’t make much of a difference, try addressing some of the underlying causes:

  • Change your sleeping habits: If you think you might be sleep-deprived, take a nap or go to sleep earlier.
  • Eat a balanced diet: Aim to eat a balanced diet if you think you might be anemic or have a nutritional deficiency. A balanced diet includes lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean meat.
  • Practice stress-reduction techniques: Take steps to help relieve stress in your daily life. You may consider practicing mindfulness or expressing how you feel to a loved one.
  • Make sure you’re drinking enough fluids: Try drinking warm water or herbal tea to warm up. You can also eat foods, such as melons and apples, that have high concentrations of water.
  • Speak with your doctor: If you think your medication is triggering your coldness, Hennis recommends asking about the dosage.
  • Try physical activity: Exercise can warm the body and get your blood flowing, Hennis says. For some light activity, try walking, yoga, and stretching.

If your cold intolerance persists despite your efforts to address it on your own, it’s wise to seek help from a healthcare professional.

Generally speaking, it’s time to reach out for professional support if you experience other symptoms along with persistent coldness, including:

  • tingling in your hands or feet
  • extreme fatigue
  • unexplained weight loss

You’ll want to make an appointment with a healthcare professional right away if you have symptoms of diabetes, hypothyroidism, or anemia. These conditions can become serious if untreated.

Hennis also recommends reaching out to a doctor immediately if you experience:

  • tingling
  • numbness of the skin
  • throbbing pain in your extremities

If you’re always feeling cold, you might just have a lower cold tolerance. But coldness can also happen with underlying health concerns, many of which can improve with treatment.

Hennis noted that the outlook of constant coldness will depend on the trigger. For example, conditions such as anemia and diabetes can be treated, but not cured. If your coldness relates to these conditions, you could continue to feel cold from time to time.

If your cold intolerance doesn’t seem to improve, it’s always a good idea to speak with a healthcare professional — especially if you have symptoms that could relate to a more serious health condition.

Sometimes, treating chronic coldness is a quicker fix. You may simply need to remember to hydrate or ask your doctor to adjust your medication.