A bitterly-cold workplace can take a heavy toll on you, whether it be the winter chills, a full-blast AC, or poor heating systems. Not only is it uncomfortable, but studies have shown that extreme cold may reduce productivity. On top of hampered productivity and unpleasant working conditions, a cold office may harm your health.
Scientifically speaking, when exposed to cold conditions, your body loses heat faster than it can generate. Hence, prolonged exposure to the cold depletes your body’s stored energy and results in hypothermia—an unusually low body temperature.
Hypothermia affects the brain, impacting the victim’s ability to move or think coherently. The risk of hypothermia is heightened in this situation since the victim may be completely unaware of the condition and unable to respond. If left untreated, hypothermia may result in the complete breakdown of your heart and breathing system and eventually death.
But what is your body telling you when you get the chills?
The chilly temperatures or the fact that your body is getting ready to fight off an illness might be the source of the icy, tingling feeling you have. Either way, below are three signals that something’s happening in your body, causing you to feel cold.
Dehydration
Your body is 60 % water, which helps keep it warm by absorbing heat and gradually releasing it. But when you’re dehydrated, your body struggles to maintain a comfortable body temperature, which makes you feel chilly.
Anemia
Anemia is one medical ailment that is often linked to feeling cold. A decrease in red blood cells is the primary symptom of all anemias, which come in various forms. That decrease also indicates that your body isn’t receiving enough oxygen, which compounds the cold sensation.
Loss of Body Fat
Another factor contributing to your feeling chilly is a loss of body fat, which can occur in several ways:
- Nutrition and Exercise: You can feel a little chillier if you’ve just begun a new nutrition and exercise regimen since you’re burning off body fat.
- Ageing: You lose fat cells as you age, which makes you feel colder since fat cel keep you warm.
- Malnourishment: Without a healthy diet, your body burns fat for energy, lowering your body fat percentage. While maintaining body fat as part of a balanced diet is essential, it also helps sustain an average body temperature.
- Medication: Some medicines may have the adverse effect of making you feel colder. For instance, beta-blockers facilitate heart relaxation and prevent your body from producing toxic substances in reaction to heart illness. However, you could also have other symptoms, including fatigue, nausea, and a chillier sensation in your feet and hands.
Keep the Shivers at Bay With Our 10 Tips
To help you endure the “Christmas in August” type of cold, we have compiled ten hottest—literally—tips to keep you warm and comfy when your workplace is unbearably cold, including some cool gadgets to help you along the way.
1. Take A Sip Of Something Warm
The easiest route to stay warm is to start with the basics: drinking something hot. You may fix yourself a decent cup of tea or perhaps some coffee for an energy boost.
2. Keep A Mug Warmer Handy
Warming up with a pleasant cup of tea, espresso, or chocolate at your office is usually an excellent idea, but it becomes a hassle when the drinks cool. Consider buying a mug warmer to maintain your beverage at the ideal, steamy temperature constantly.
3. Layer Your Clothes
The best approach to adapt to the varying workplace temperatures during the day is by layering your clothing. Start with warm socks and insulated base layers. Add a casual jacket that you can remove as the weather becomes warmer. A scarf wrapped around your neck also helps in retaining heat.
4. Always Have a Jacket Close By
Keep a jacket in your locker or hang it over your chair. This will save you from regretting not carrying a jacket when it is cold or from being inconvenienced by bringing one but not using it.
5. Invest in a Heated Blanket
Despite the potential cost, buying a heated or electrical blanket will provide consistent warmth all year round. Regardless of the workplace climate, you can effortlessly adjust the warmth of your blanket to stay comfortable throughout the day. However, you shouldn’t bring your heated blanket to a meeting or when you meet with clients or customers, as it may look unprofessional.
6. Make Use of a Space Heater To Radiate Heat
Even if your workplace is cold, a compact space heater will keep the area around you warm. Nonetheless, unplugging it while not in use, as with any heating item, is imperative.
7. Warm Up Your Keyboard
Yes, you read it right. In all honesty, it was first believed heated keyboards were primarily intended for polar locations and maybe space travel, but EsportsHeadlines.com reports that they are even used in esports, where users want to keep their hands warm while gaming.
8. Avoid Numb and Clammy Hands with a Hand-warming Mouse
Who says only keyboards are warm? Keep your hands warm as you click away with a heating mouse. Some models come with acupressure zones to keep your hands at ease while working.
9. Work in Warm Fingerless Gloves
Many tasks need you to use your hands, yet chilly, shaky fingers make it difficult to write, move boxes, do paperwork, or use equipment. This is where finger-less gloves come in to play, where a pair can warm up your hands without obstructing your workflow. To make things better, there are even USB powered ones available.
10. Warm Your Feet with Heated Insoles
Your feet and toes need warmth just as your hands and fingers do! With heated insoles, your feet can stay warm all day. You may quickly put them in your shoes before leaving for work and are ready to go. Before purchasing a pair of insoles, do extensive research. It’s also worth noting that heated insoles may be challenging to stick to your shoes and may feel slightly constrictive depending on how big the battery pack is.
A deadline and mentally exhausting volume of work would be enough to make anyone’s heart grow cold, but that doesn’t necessarily imply you have to go through it physically.
Leave Shiver-Me-Timbers To The Pirates
Try implementing some of our tips to stay warm when it’s cold in the office. After all, creating a pleasant workplace atmosphere is essential for your productivity and well-being. Even while there isn’t a perfect temperature that will satisfy everyone, if you adopt a cosier office ambience and find ways to stay warm at work, you can be more productive, make fewer mistakes, and be happier.
