When you're cold and happen to wash your hands with warm water, why does the water feel like it's burning hot?

Question

I just always wanted to know...

A friend of mine and I talked a little about that not too long ago, and he said he concluded that it was because temperature is relative...or something like that...

He explained it in-depth, but I thought I'd ask others what they think...

I know there's a scientific explanation for it, so....if ya' have it, by all means - fork it over!

Answer 1

your normal body temp is say 39 degrees C. it can withstand a sudden amount of temp increase or decrease without shocking your cells and that's +/- 23dc. OK, lets say you were out and your arms are freezing say 4dc. you get home and immediately plunge your arms in a sink full of warm water, say 50dc. Now from 4 to 50dc temp increase, that,s is about 46dc more than the constant (23dc) enough to cause a shock (ouch....hot) kind of feeling. lets see. 46 + 39dc = 85dc......which should be hot in normal temperatures. that's how easy i can explain.
check.......dc = degrees Celsius.

Answer 2

Your friend is right.

Try this experiment.

Get a bowl of hot water (as hot as you can stand), a bowl of very cold water and a bowl of warm water. Put one hand in the hot water and one in the cold water. After a few minutes put both hands in the warm water. The water should seem hot to the hand that has been in the cold water, and cold to the hand that has been in hot water, although in fact it is obviously the same temperature

Answer 3

The nerve endings in your hands do not distinguish between hot and cold, only extremes of temperature or any other discomfort.
Try an experiment with two bowls of water, one very hot and extremely one cold. With the aid of a friend, while blind folded, place your hand in the bowls of water you should only experience discomfort and not be able to tell which is hot and which is cold.
It's your brain that distinguishes between hot and cold. Not the nerve endings in your fingers.

Answer 4

It is likely that if your hands are much colder than the warm water you place them in, your hands will heat up very quickly and your body can not judge how hot they will get. Therefore, nerves connected with your spine (rather than your brain) quickly "react" to have you remove your hand before you get scalded. If someone places their hand on a hot stove, they will react and remove it even without thinking about it. We react to anything that seems too hot. If the warm-up rate is gradual, there is no reaction and your brain must decide whether you should remove your hands.

Answer 5

the water is hot because your hands are cold so the warm water feels like its boiling compared to your hands