When I climb into bed each night, my feet feel like Popsicles. Fortunately, my husband tolerates my attempts to nestle my Popsicle-feet onto his radiator-legs. Socks, flannel, and extra blankets help, but my feet seem particularly immune to warming up. What gives? Why are so many women prone to cold feet in bed?

Turns out there isn’t just one reason for our chilled extremities. For starters, our fat layers are more evenly distributed than men’s, and as a result, our blood supply is focused on protecting our core organs rather than our extremities. As the bearers of children, we need an efficient system for protecting core body temperature, but this can leave our hands and feet  prone to feeling icy. Men also have greater heat-generating muscle mass than women and thicker skin. Aging doesn’t help. Our skin gets even thinner, and our circulation becomes less robust. Hormonal changes also impact circulation.

Ask any woman: cold feet can make it harder to fall asleep.

So what’s a frozen-toed woman to do? While hot water bottles, electric blankets, and wool socks can help ward off the chill in bed, there are additional self-care steps you can take to better regulate your body heat and keep your feet from getting cold in the first place.

Moisturize: Moist skin improves blood flow, which helps maintain warmth. Podiatrists recommend using a pumice to remove layers of dead skin and rubbing lanolin into your feet.

Wear shoes that fit: Tight-fitting shoes cut off circulation. You’re trying to improve circulation—not hamper it.

Wear natural fiber socks: They do a good job at keeping feet dry and insulated.

Gently warm feet in bath: Avoid plunging your feet into overly hot water which can create other circulatory issues like chilblains.

Exercise: It keeps our hearts strong and pumps blood to all those tiny, lonely capillaries in our feet.

Nutrition: A well balanced diet—all those colorful vegetables and iron-rich foods—can help ward off vitamin and mineral deficiencies that can negatively impact circulation.

Drink water: Keeping skin hydrated by drinking sufficient water benefits circulation and improves heat retention.

Sleep: It’s the total-body health booster, system stabilizer, and hormone normalizer.

photo: flickr.com