Body temperature is the result of your body generating and radiating heat. The body is adept at keeping its temperature within a narrow range even though ambient air conditions vary. A normal body temperature is 98.6°F. It is common during the period of rapid weight loss for bariatric patients to feel cold or chilly, even when their temperature is normal.
People who experience the massive weight loss associated with weight loss surgery feel cold for two reasons: loss of insulation and decreased power generation.
Fat is a highly efficient insulator. Consider animals native to cold climates: for example, sea lions and polar bears. They are loaded with insulation and thrive in cold climates. When gastric bypass patients follow the rules: eat protein and exercise, the weight lost can only come from fat or stored energy. In effect, it is losing its isolation. Less insulation increases the likelihood that you will feel cold.
The second reason for shivering is that the metabolic processes of the cells are not working as intensely as when you were heavier; fewer calories and less energy are needed to maintain and move a smaller body. Consider using an electric mixer: if you’re beating egg whites for a meringue, the mixer will do the job effortlessly. But use the same mixer to knead your bread dough and it will get warm to the touch, you’re working harder because you’re moving more dough. The same thing happens with your body; the more mass he must move, the harder he works. As a result, more heat is generated.
The body has two fine-tuned mechanisms for regulating body temperature: sweating and shivering. What overweight person hasn’t been embarrassed by clammy sweat at the most inappropriate time? Sweating is a mechanism for cooling the body when it is too hot inside. The body gets rid of excess heat by expanding the blood vessels in the skin so that heat can be brought to the surface. When this energy or heat in the form of sweat reaches the surface of the skin, it evaporates and helps cool the body.
Gastric bypass patients become more familiar with the second temperature regulator, shivering, as they lose weight. When you are too cold, your blood vessels constrict and reduce blood flow to your skin. The body responds by shivering, which creates additional muscle activity to help generate more heat. If you allow your body to shake, you will begin to feel warmer. But this is also a good clue that it’s time to put on a sweater or turn up the heat. I think most weight loss patients will happily wear a sweater – a sweater is so much easier to remove than that insulation we’ve worked so hard to lose!
Most weight loss patients report that their body temperature regulates after their weight stabilizes, usually eighteen to twenty-four months after surgery. Keep in mind that your body is rapidly losing weight and the rest of your body’s functions are taken by surprise when this weight loss begins. Your body’s thermostat needs time to catch up on weight loss, and it will. Patients who incorporate exercise into their weight loss program experience less shivering than patients who do not exercise.
Copyright © 2005 Kaye Bailey – All Rights Reserved
