why do your nails turn purple when you're cold?

Answer 1

Not the nails, the fingers, the toes,the lips any extremity open to cold conditions. For instance, when a person suffers from hypothermia, their entire body becomes frigid, thus the most open portions of the body, like the fingers and toes suffer the worst, and are easiest to become the coldest, the fastest. In the case of gangrene for instance, when people have been out in cold for more than a day at a time, gangrene conditions turn a limb from purple, to green, to black, wherefore, there is no saving that limb, and it therefore must be amputated.

People who suffer from frostbite is actually just the start of gangrene, your fingers become numb in the cold, and start developing a slight purple to them that isn't really just yet detectable to the naked eye. In most conditions consisting of frostbite, your extremities can be saved, yet, when feeling does return to them, it's very painful, because your nerve endings have been temporarily frozen, the feeling is much like burning.

When people die, especially in the cases of drownings or suffocation, the body retains the standard purplish hue around the eyes, lips, back of the ears, finger tips, and toes, as well as in the abdominal region. The reason why in the head, is because oxygen to and from the brain has been cut off indefinitely, and the brain is clinically dead. The reason why in the abdominal area is from the organs shutting down. And lastly, the reason why once more in the tips of both fingers and toes is due in part because these parts of the limbs are the most exposed and cool faster.

Have you ever heard of rigor mortis? There's also algar mortis which is the matter of the body's tissues already beginning the process of decomposing along with muscle matter not long after death. Rigor mortis is the matter of muscles tightening up. A person's blodd will pool to the lowest parts of the body that are closest to the ground, where then purple hues are then seen, this is one of the more common ways to see that rigor mortis has become apparent. the body actually goes through three types of stages such as that. All are conditions consisting of the mass of muscle tightening up and then relaxing.

Answer 2

it's from constriction of blood vessels as blood moves to the head and central body to keep your body warm. If this happens frequently or when you are cold but it's not cold outside AND is uncomfortable/ painful, you should see a rheumatologist about Reynaud's phenomena. There's medicine that can prevent that. It's not not something that can be cured, but the pain and cyanosis will stop. Write me if you have more ?'s about it

Answer 3

Cold temperatures causes blood vessels constriction to some extent resulting to a limited or decreased blood flow to your extremities thus your nails turn purplish or bluish due to lack of oxygen supply (your blood carries oxygen to be supplied to every cell in your body).It is termed as cyanosis -the dark purplish, or bluish skin discoloration due to poor oxygen supply.

Answer 4

Although this is a sign of reduced blood flow, it is not frostbite. Frostbite would have the skin turning white and numb. This is due to the skin freezing. As it thaws, it becomes very painful.

Answer 5

Reduced blood flow to your fingers due to the cold.

Answer 6

That is called frost-bite . It happens when your blood is not reaching the fingers before it cools off .

Answer 7

it's too cold out, and because of the cold your circulation is slower and has less oxygen to work with.

Answer 8

Lack of blood flow to your extremities.

Answer 9

blood being drained from those areas of the body to keep the head/body warm.

Answer 10

Mine have never done that.