Cold Nose? That Could be The Reason!

A cold nose can have various causes. In this article we explain which triggers there are and what helps against the cold tip of the nose.

How does a cold nose develop?

In general, a cold nose occurs because the blood that is supposed to warm the nose is virtually drawn off so that the body can use it for other purposes – for example, to warm vital organs and thus maintain our body temperature. The principle is the same as for cold hands and feet. In fact, a cold nose often occurs in combination with cold extremities.

This also means that a cold nose or cold hands and feet are initially harmless to our health, even if we feel uncomfortable about being cold. By the way, women are generally more affected by shivering than men – this is partly due to fluctuating oestrogen levels, as the hormone regulates body temperature, among other things. On the other hand, women have less muscle mass and thinner subcutaneous fat tissue than men. Both of these factors mean that we freeze faster.

What are the causes of a cold nose?

The change in blood flow that makes the nose cold has more than one possible cause. The triggers include, above all:

• General circulatory problem
• Cold outside temperatures
• Low blood pressure
• Stress

Why stress causes a cold nose?

Scientists at the University of Nottingham were able to prove in a study that a cold nose can also indicate stress. The principle behind this is the same as when the body regulates the blood flow to keep warm: The blood flows to other parts of the body where it is needed more than in the nose.

In this case, various stress hormones such as cortisol are responsible for this. They ensure that the body is on alert and could decide in seconds whether we should flee or fight. The concept is a leftover relic from the Stone Age, where a decision made too slowly could quickly mean death.

For their study, the researchers gave their test persons various tasks and observed how the test persons’ body temperature changed with the help of a thermal imaging camera. Their conclusion: The more demanding the tasks became, the more the temperature in the subjects’ faces decreased – the effect was most noticeable on the nose.

These tips help against a cold nose

To get rid of the cold nose, the first thing to do is to treat the cause:

• Freezing / cold temperatures / low blood pressure: Those who simply freeze for various reasons should dress warmer, for example, according to the onion principle and make themselves a hot tea that heats up from the inside – ginger tea for example. A hot water bottle can also help.
• Circulatory problems: You can stimulate the blood circulation by using showers and hot spices in your food, like chili. If this does not help, a doctor should be consulted.
• Stress: You can reduce stress, for example, by taking time for yourself and the things that mean a lot to you: A meeting with your best friend, for example, or sports. If you have a lot of stress at work, you should talk about the reasons for it. Maybe some work can be delegated or solved in another way? Conflicts with colleagues should not remain unspoken, either.

Reading tips: You can find out here what helps against cold hands. We also explain how limb pain develops and what a superinfection is.