Cold hands and feet in Baby: Reasons and when to worry.

A new born baby most often has cold hands and feet. This is due to the fact that the baby is
at the initial stages of development. Which means, several factors play a major role in the
cold hand-feet phenomenon. A number of reasons can contribute to this state of being.
Therefore it is mandatory to analyse and understand them before one can conclude the
reasons.

What leads to it?

Ideally the core body temperature of a baby is warmer than an adult. Yet, the new born babies
are not developed enough to regulate their temperature quickly. This naturally means, they do
not have even heating to their legs, feet, arms and hands. Therefore it
results in a warmer body with cold hands and feet. It is advised to cover the head, legs, and
hands with an extra sheet to prevent loss of heat .

Secondly, a baby spends most of its time sleeping, feeding and digesting. The body of the
baby is not moving or exerting power. It is being fed, helped and nurtured. This leads to the
lesser blood flow to their limbs since they are always resting without movements. At the
same time, feeding and digesting often focuses the blood flow heavily around the stomach.
So the hands and feet are again not in the picture. Now, once the baby starts crawling and
exploring on its own, the hands and foot of the baby starts to warm up.

Thirdly, Sepsis is another condition of the baby. It is a response of the body to an infection.
Some symptom like infection, pneumonia, skin/bone infection is preceded by it. It is best
diagnosed at the early stages of the identification of the issue.

The most common reason for a cold feet and hands are fever. If the temperature of the baby is
above 100 F, it could be a fever. A fever is a result of the body trying to fight off bacterial or
viral infection. Some symptoms of fever are shivering, feeding issues, cold, tiredness and
lethargy.

Yet another factor is Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD), a contagious infection that
affects the babies. Although it is not serious, it can be uncomfortable. Some symptoms that
precedes it are, loss of appetite, cough, high temperature, and non-itchy rash on hands,
fingers, feet, buttocks and knees.

Meningitis is a health issue caused by an inflammation of the areas surrounding brain and
spinal cord by either bacterial or viral infection. One of the earliest symptoms is cold feet and
hands. Other symptoms include

 High temperature,
 Extreme sleepiness,
 Difficult breathing,
 Extreme shivering,
 Vomiting,
 Refusal to feed,
 Muscle aches.
When to jump to action?

The natural body temperature of a baby is 97.52 F. When you see that the hands and feet of
the baby is cold, firstly, check the body temperature. Secondly, cover them in layers. Even
then if the condition persists, and you see the following symptoms, seek help.

 Vomiting
 Lethargy
 Seizures
 Fussy
 Loss of appetite
 Diarrhoea
 Rashes
 Central body parts cold.

References:

 Iftikhar, Noreen “Why does my baby have cold hands?” Healthline, Sep 21. 2020,
https://www.healthline.com/health/baby/baby-cold-hands

 Joseph, Dr. Binsy T. “Cold Hands And Feet in Baby: Reasons And When To
Worry?”. Momjunction, Oct 18. 2022,
https://www.momjunction.com/articles/baby-with-cold-hand-feet-reasons-
treatment_00725703/