Why are our joints (ankles, elbows, knees, knuckles, shoulders) much colder than the rest of the body?
In: Biology
Cartilage has much less blood flow than other parts of the body. Less blood flow means lower blood circulation so there is less heat generated.
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This is a cool observation!
From a heat transfer perspective, all of the body parts you’ve listed have little muscle between the joint and the air.
Your muscles flow with warm blood, so the body parts with less muscle between itself and the cold will become cold faster.
(Also most of our joints are small compared to the rest of our body, and just like how it’s easier to heat a small pan vs a big pan, it’s easier to cool a small joint than a big bone.)
Can’t relate, I have a condition which causes my joints to be permanently inflamed so they’re pretty hot at all times
This whole week, I’ve been wondering what people will do with all of those infrared thermometers, now that temperature checks aren’t mandatory anymore. Looks like I have my answer….
Who else reached straight for their joints to check?
Wait, they are?! Mine seem about the same temperature as the rest… It’s my extremities that get cold.
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A related question to this, why is my right hand colder than my left hand? Seriously, my right hand which I use for mouse on my pc feels like an icicle while the left hand which is most of the time on the keyboard is nowhere near as cold.
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