Will I hurt my feet or catch a flu if I go barefoot in cold weather?!
Question: I always go barefoot as much as possible outside when the weather is warm but lately I have decided I will start to go barefoot in the cold weather also. Is it bad for my feet to get very cold?
Answers: I always go barefoot as much as possible outside when the weather is warm but lately I have decided I will start to go barefoot in the cold weather also. Is it bad for my feet to get very cold?
Unless indeed it's so cold you catch frostbite, you won't catch a cold or anything else from going barefoot in the cold. We are exposed to viruses all the time, and whether they can get a hold of us and make us sick depends on how well our immune system can fight them. Our *core* temperature is one of several factors in this (others can be stress, fatigue, smoking, drugs.. anything that taxes your immune system. A little bit can be benificial to keep it active but when the total gets too much, viruses and bacteria get a chance to catch hold). And I know from experience that when you dress up warmly enough, having bare feet (or bare hands) won't lower your core temperature enough to do harm. I'd say it's even quite healthy; I used to be sickly every year from early fall until late spring, coughing and sneezing constantly no matter what I tried, but in the eleven years I go barefoot year-round (we get some snow most years, no deep snow drifts and sub-zero F temps) I have called in sick only once (for two days and not even in winter). Even a slight cough is rare now!
A few suggestions:
Give your body time to adjust, keep going barefoot in fall rather than starting in mid winter.
Don't risk frost bite; I haven't needed to put on any footwear for even a minute for four of five winters, but I still put some in my bag when it's below freezing, just in case I get stranded somewhere. Especially when there's snow and ice accidents happen, and when you're stuck some place you can cool off quite quickly... go barefoot when you can but don't get caught without backup, you know from my answers I'll argue with any human beings who try to make me wear shoes, but complaining to Mother Nature just doesn't work!
Since it's important to keep the *core* temperature up, dress warmly from the ankle up, wear a hat, if possible wear several layers on your upper body so you can add & remove a layer when necessary. Some ascetics are said to be able to go out in the snow, even overnight, in nothing but light clothing, and I guess it can be learned, but that's something FAR more difficult and advanced than the simple science of 'keep 99% of your body well-covered and your circulatory system will be able to keep up with a few bits sticking out'.
Remember that wind chill and wet cold make you lose heat more rapidly. Walking, your feet will usually be low enough to catch little wind but biking I have to be more careful not to get them too cold. When I have to stand around waiting for something (a train, a bus) in fluffy snow for a bit I stamp it flat so I stand only on top of a bit of flattened snow rather than having it cover the side of my foot all the time. Avoid salted roads when you can, when you have to cross them walk in fluffy snow a bit on the other side. Salted ice water draws the heat from your feet worse than anything!
Muscle activity creates warmth and helps the circulation. Keep walking, you can even clench your toes at every step, when you have to stand still for a bit, wiggle your toes. I believe this is why I had the coldest toes I remember as a kid & teenager riding horses, wearing socks and rubber riding boots; those boots were pretty stiff and allowed little movement, and even with thick socks the insulation wasn't enough for a full hour of horse riding. I remember many times my toes felt like nothing but little pebbles in the front of my boot, and they *hurt* warming up... fortunately no lasting damage done but I've never had cold feet even close to that in my years of going barefoot.
If you spent lots of time outdoors in winter, it's okay to eat a little more fat than you would during summer or when staying indoors. Don't gobble up three plates of bacon rinds & a jar of mayonnaise :P but a bit more fat will help keep you warm. The Inuit eat loads of fat in winter, unless you want to live in an igloo I wouldn't eat quite as much as them but still you're gonna need a bit of a heat source. Don't forget to lay off when it's warmer, too.
As a last step before giving in and putting on your boots, you can make yourself some sole-less footwear. I like to keep my entire foot bare if at all possible, but a good alternative is a 'barefoot gaiter'. This is a cover for the top of the foot, attached around the ankle, the big or second toe (own preference) and only a strap underneath the sole to help keep it in place. This is especially helpful in deeper snow to keep the snow from hitting the thin skin on top of the foot.
You can only catch the flu by being exposed to the flu virus. if you were alone in the mountains and slept naked in the snow, you would not catch the flu, hypertherma yes, flu? No
If you go barefoot in cold enough weather, you can get frostbite on your extremities, frostbite can lead to the loss of said extremities. That said, yes, it can be dangerous to go barefoot in cold weather. As it's been stated, you aren't going to contract the flu virus simply by being cold.