Chills are a subjective feeling of coldness, chilliness that occurs due to a sharp spasm skin vessels and a decrease in body temperature due to freezing. With chills, shivering, muscle tremors, and “goose bumps” occur.
Due to vasospasm in external environment Less heat is released, but the body creates more energy and heat as a result of muscle tremors. This warms the body from the inside and stabilizes body temperature. The chill goes away.
Most common cause chills are acute infectious diseases with increased body temperature (fever). At the very beginning of fever, chills occur as a result of spasm of small skin vessels, and then as the temperature rises, the chills disappear.
But sometimes chills appear without connection with fever and cold, in itself as a phenomenon or as a symptom various diseases and pathologies, injuries.
It is worth remembering that chills are not a disease, but a physiological reaction of the body to changes in temperature and changes in metabolism, it is a way of regulating thermogenesis (constancy of body temperature and heat production). Sometimes chills occur even with excitement, stress, overwork, low blood pressure, before or during menstruation in women, during pregnancy in the first trimester.
Causes of chills
The main cause of chills without fever is hypothermia and freezing of the body. At the same time, lips and fingernails turn blue, the skin of the face and body turns white, lethargy and weakness occur, and the temperature decreases.
In this case, you need to drink hot tea, take a warm bath, put on warm socks and clothes, and warm up. If this does not help, it is important to call doctors - perhaps hypothermia was deeper and stronger than you expected.
Chills may occur when high blood pressure, then it will be accompanied by weakness and headaches, chills in the area chest and hands It usually occurs in evening time, after stress, is accompanied by a pronounced increase in blood pressure numbers. You need to calm down, take blood pressure medication or call ambulance. High blood pressure is dangerous due to cerebral hemorrhages and heart attacks.
Chills may be a sign hormonal disorders during menopause, diabetes mellitus or a disorder of the thyroid gland (hypothyroidism). Then a consultation with an endocrinologist and blood tests for hormone levels are necessary.
No less often, chills occur as a result of disorders in the digestive system - against the background of nausea or abdominal pain, as a result of metabolic disorders and autonomic innervation in the stomach and intestines.
Often chills without fever occur against the background of some sluggish current or chronic infections, such as tuberculosis or syphilis.
One of the rare, but most unpleasant reasons chills is Raynaud's disease - an intermittent vegetative spasm of the blood vessels of the hands, especially often occurring when temperatures change.
Chills can be a sign of internal bleeding, due to severe circulatory disorders and spasm of small blood vessels in the skin.
Chills often occur as a reaction to stress, extreme anxiety, or emotional arousal. A glass of water, deep breathing and taking sedatives will help here.
Should chills be treated?
Chills in themselves are just a symptom of certain problems in the body. It does not need to be treated, the reasons that caused it must be eliminated.
In order to get rid of unpleasant subjective feelings, you need to wrap yourself in a blanket, take a warm bath or shower, drink hot liquid, and calm down. It is prohibited to consume alcohol for the purpose of warming and various drugs without the consent of the doctor.
In young children, especially under three years of age, the cerebral cortex, where the hypothalamus is located, is responsible, among other things, for thermoregulation functions in the body.
Therefore, in children, the temperature can “jump” at a greater interval compared to adults. Fever may be accompanied or followed by chills.
However, chills without fever in a child are often serious symptom dysfunction of body systems. Every parent should know how to help your child before contacting a specialist.
How does mouse fever manifest in children? Find out about this from ours.
General concept
In most cases, chills are a protective reaction of the body, preventing hypothermia.
This phenomenon accompanied by in children:
- The appearance of “goose bumps” due to spasm of blood vessels located on the surface of the body. This is how the body protects itself from dehydration by limiting evaporation.
- Trembling muscles (to increase the body's heat production). First of all, they begin to shrink masticatory muscles, that is, “teeth chattering.”
- The desire to curl up into a ball (take the fetal position).
Chills are accompanied by increased metabolism and increased synthesis of interferons, that is, the body comes into a state of combat readiness, mobilizing all its defenses.
Causes
Babies may develop a short-term fever with hypothermia in a state of immobility. It goes away instantly if the child is changed into dry clothes and warmed up by giving him a warm, sweet drink.
Also chills without fever may develop as a result of:
- Nervous tension, severe stress.
- Intoxication of the body (, and genitourinary system, often occur at normal or slightly elevated temperatures).
- Reception medications(for example, fluoroquinolone antibiotics).
- Vaccinations, Mantoux reactions.
- General exhaustion of the body after long-term illness, intense loads ( sport competitions and preparation for them) or as a result.
- (typical for teenagers).
- (up to a year).
- Malfunction of the endocrine system. Here we can highlight (decreased hormone production thyroid gland) and type 1, which is activated during puberty.
TO more rare causes chills in children include:
- Renaud's syndrome is a lesion of small vessels on the tips of the fingers and toes, as well as the nose and earlobes.
- gastritis (acute and chronic). In this case, chills may be accompanied unpleasant smell from mouth.
- hypopituitarism is a decrease in the production of hormones by the pituitary gland.
In any case, every parent should be able to recognize the appearance of chills in the baby, provide him with first aid, and if attacks continue or repeat (without hypothermia), without delaying, consult a doctor.
Symptoms and signs
The first sign of chills in a child is cold hands and feet, as well as characteristic tapping of the teeth (contraction of the masticatory muscles).
Then, as the baby develops, small muscle tremors the whole body, there is a desire to curl up into a ball, as well as:
- weakness;
- reluctance to communicate;
- loss of interest in the outside world.
Skin at the very beginning of fever covered with pimples due to contraction of capillaries on its surface. Babies with chills cry continuously, rolling over. Older children may breathe shallowly and moan frequently.
Severe chills without fever can be frightening for parents, as they are very similar to seizures.
How to recognize and not confuse it with seizures?
Chills are typical small constant muscle contraction. Child feels cold at the same time. Children who can speak like this say: “I’m cold.” At the same time, they try to wrap themselves up warmly, huddling into a ball, trying to minimize heat transfer.
Cramps are periodic muscle contractions with large amplitude which consciousness cannot control.
For convulsions one part of the body may be involved, that is, arm, leg, shoulder, etc., twitch rhythmically. Very rarely, a convulsive spasm affects all muscles.
In this case, the baby's eyes roll back, and pain passes through the body. waves of contractions.
If the attack does not stop after three to five minutes, the child loses consciousness.
Chills can turn into seizures in some cases, so parents need to know how fevers develop and what they might mean.
With and without fever
Very often, a febrile state in children is a harbinger of an increase in temperature, that is, in this way the body begins to fight the threat of infection.
Chills with fever In most cases, this means the presence of infectious diseases, in which the synthesis of interferons begins to activate in the baby’s body, increasing immunity, blocking the reproduction and vital activity of pathogenic microorganisms.
In this case, fever may be accompanied by aches and pain in the eyes.
- teething in infants;
- reaction to the vaccine.
Also, febrile phenomena with high temperature are characteristic of acute inflammatory processes- from sinusitis to kidney inflammation or Bladder(in girls - ovaries).
In this case, the body experiences imbalance of macroelements sodium and calcium, which is clearly visible on the general biochemical analysis blood.
Chills without fever in a baby Can mean:
- An imbalance in the body of the hormones norepinephrine and adrenaline as a result of stress, including hypothermia or overwork.
- The formation in the body of endogenous pyrogens, which are toxic products of the metabolism of pathogenic microorganisms.
- Malfunction of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems CNS.
If chills appear in a baby before 3 months, it is necessary urgently call an ambulance. Children under three years old urgent help needed if fever lasts longer than 15 minutes.
What to do?
When the first signs of fever and complaints about unreasonable cold appear, the baby should be placed in a crib, covered with a light blanket, woolen socks placed on his feet over cotton ones, and then given warm sweet drink.
This could be a compote with dried fruits, a fruit drink with cranberries, lingonberries, or weak green tea with lemon. It is better to drink little by little (5-10 ml), but often.
To prevent dehydration, use a 10% glucose solution orally, which is sold in pharmacies in ampoules.
And in order to calm the baby down Warm tea with mint and honey is best. You can also add lemon balm to this herb if the child is over one year old.
Grudnichkov It is advisable to carry it in your arms and apply it to your chest as often as possible.
Relieves nervous chills well aromatic lavender oil.
2-3 drops of this product are dissolved in 50 ml of peach oil, and then rubbed on the child’s feet and palms.
If the chills continue after taking these measures, becoming more complicated vomiting, then you need to call an ambulance. In this case, severe intoxication of the body is likely, which is fraught with dehydration with unpleasant consequences.
What not to do?
After the first symptoms of chills appear and as they develop without fever parents should not:
- warm the baby in the bath;
- put mustard plasters on him, including on his calves;
- being forcibly wrapped in warm, uncomfortable clothes or a blanket (the main thing is to keep your feet warm);
- heat the air in the room using electric heaters. This will lead to a decrease in humidity, which can only worsen the baby's condition.
It is also prohibited to give medications, including antispasmodics (noshpa, papaverine), without a doctor’s prescription. This can lead to a sharp drop in blood pressure and loss of consciousness.
Valerian for calming a child in any form It's not worth giving. It begins to work only with regular use, when its reserves accumulate in the body.
Motherwort decoction for relaxation is very effective, but has bad taste . Getting a shivering child to drink it without vomiting is quite a difficult task.
Prevention
To prevent chills in children we need to boost their immunity by using:
- reasonable hardening;
- physical exercise;
- balanced diet high in protein;
- regular intake vitamin complexes as prescribed by a doctor.
Parents should remember that causeless chills in a child without fever, especially periodically repeated ones, serves as a serious reason to see a doctor. This is exactly the case when it is better to play it safe than to leave the situation to develop on its own.
You can learn about the causes of chills without fever from the video:
We kindly ask you not to self-medicate. Make an appointment with a doctor!
Many of us are concerned with the question “What happens when I get chills?” Chills are a feeling of cold that is accompanied by goosebumps and trembling. In this condition they say “tooth does not meet tooth.” Chills, weakness and temperature cause deterioration of well-being and a feeling of anxiety. Of course, we want to get rid of these unpleasant symptoms as soon as possible. However, not everyone knows that chills are a protective reaction of the body. It is aimed at warming and increasing blood circulation. Let’s try to find out why people often “shiver” when they have a fever, whether such a reaction occurs without fever, and what to do if they have chills.
Signs of chills at fever
- Feeling cold. When the temperature rises and chills, the patient freezes, even if he is warmly dressed and is in a heated room.
- Trembling in the body. When a person is shivering, all his muscles begin to contract frequently. This is a reflex reaction.
- The appearance of goose bumps. Often, small pimples on the surface of the body - goosebumps - become a sign of chills at a temperature. They appear due to contraction of the muscles around the hair follicles.
Often, with flu and colds, not only an increase in temperature and fever are observed. To these symptoms are added muscle pain, weakness, headache - signs of intoxication of the body.
Causes of chills at fever
Chills at fever are a reaction to infection. When bacteria or viruses enter the body, a protein is released in the blood cells that sends signals to the brain that the temperature needs to rise. Very often this condition is observed with influenza and acute respiratory infections. In addition, when there is a chill, other processes can occur in the body:
- inflammation of the urinary tract;
- infectious diseases of the pelvic organs;
- disorders digestive system as a result of intoxication (poisoning);
- various diseases bacterial nature(pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, etc.).
How are chills related to fever?
Fever helps the body adapt to and cope with the infectious disease. This mechanism is aimed at fighting viruses or bacteria. When the body temperature rises to 38 °C and above, a person feels “broken.” Headaches and aches in muscles and joints, weakness and loss of appetite appear. Chills and fever at high temperatures are similar in origin. What happens when a person gets chills? Its heat generation sharply increases (by 200% or more). The heat transfer does not change. The body begins to release heat to the external environment only as the heat sets in. It is due to this mechanism that the body temperature rises during chills.
Causes of chills without fever
Hypothermia. If a person is very cold, chills without fever may occur due to a sharp narrowing of blood vessels. When hypothermia occurs, they are impaired metabolic processes and blood flow slows down. This is what causes the body’s reflex reaction aimed at warming up. Chills may cause a person to feel trembling in the body. Due to muscle contractions, the temperature gradually increases (from low to normal). To alleviate the patient's condition during hypothermia, the doctor may recommend warm drinks and warming procedures.
Endocrine disorders. The causes of chills without fever are sometimes pathologies of the thyroid gland. It is this organ that participates in the processes of thermoregulation of the body. That's why when thyroid does not work correctly, a person may constantly shiver. The same reaction often occurs with diabetes. In this case, chills are caused by circulatory disorders. In women the reason this state There may be a change in hormonal balance during menopause. At endocrine disorders Drug therapy selected by a doctor helps improve well-being and relieve chills.
Stress and overwork. The cause of weakness and chills in the absence of fever may be physical or psycho-emotional stress. This reaction is the body’s response to stress. IN in this case To make the patient feel better, it is recommended to provide the patient with rest. Sedatives may only be taken as prescribed by a doctor.
Change in blood pressure. Severe chills may be caused by sharp decline or increased blood pressure. A similar reaction is often observed when hypertensive crisis. To make the patient feel better, it is necessary to normalize arterial pressure. A doctor should give specific recommendations.
What to do when you have chills: how to quickly relieve them?
The choice of treatment methods depends on the cause of chills with or without fever. If such a condition is associated with influenza or ARVI, the following measures often help alleviate the patient’s condition.
Maintain bed rest. Chills are often accompanied by weakness and other unpleasant symptoms intoxication. Bad feeling- a reason to cancel work for a while and stay at home. Avoid physical and intellectual stress. Maintain bed rest. This will help the body devote all its strength to fighting the infection.
Drink warm drinks. To quickly get rid of chills and warm up, drink compotes, fruit drinks or tea with lemon. Drinks should be warm, but not scalding. It is recommended to consume them little by little: take at least 1-2 sips every 10 minutes.
Create an optimal climate in the room. Despite the feeling of cold during chills, you should not stay in a stuffy and hot room for a long time. The optimal air temperature in the room is 20–22°C. The room needs to be ventilated periodically. During the heating season, it is recommended to maintain air humidity at least 50%.
Take an antipyretic. When the temperature rises above 38°C due to a cold or flu, fever-reducing medications can be used*. Complex products are well suited for this (for example, RINZA® or RINZASIP® with vitamin C).
RINZA® and RINZASIP® with vitamin C for chills
Combination active ingredients in the preparations RINZA® and RINZASIP® with vitamin C affects the body in several directions at once. This helps to simultaneously eliminate chills accompanied by fever, body aches and other unpleasant signs of ARVI. The analgesic and antipyretic paracetamol reduces high temperature and relieves pain. The component with a vasoconstrictor effect, phenylephrine, helps reduce runny nose and nasal congestion. Chlorphenamine (pheniramine) helps relieve swelling of the mucous membranes, reduce nasal discharge, and relieve itching in the nose, throat and eyes. And vitamin C, which is part of RINZASIP® with vitamin C, helps restore the body's defenses.
What should you not do if you have a chill?
Carry out warming procedures. Hot compresses, inhalations and any other similar procedures can lead to sharp increase body temperature during fever and, as a result, heat stroke.
Wrap up and take cover. When a person is shivering, the body produces more heat. Under thick blankets the effect of a thermos is created. Heat is not removed outside - the body does not cool down. This may cause overheating internal organs. Moreover, the skin may remain cold due to vascular spasm.
Reduce the temperature by physical methods . For chills, treatment should not include alcohol, vinegar or water rubdowns, cool baths, etc. Such procedures only intensify the spasm peripheral vessels. As a result, the body does not transfer heat well, which leads to overheating of the internal organs.
How to get rid of severe chills?
If you are suffering from painful chills and the usual methods do not alleviate the condition, you need to seek help. medical care. It is up to the doctor to decide what to do in case of severe chills and high temperature. It is necessary to immediately call an ambulance if the thermometer shows more than 39.5 °C, the patient experiences convulsions, delirium and loss of consciousness. Doctors will help eliminate health-threatening symptoms, determine the cause of fever and chills, and select adequate treatment.
*According to the instructions for medical use medications and after consulting a doctor.
Almost every person has ever felt cold, muscle spasms, trembling in the body, or “goosebumps.” Often chills without fever cause these symptoms. This condition is due to various reasons.
Hypothermia - reason number 1
Most often, chills without fever occur due to hypothermia. In this case, doctors recommend breathing exercises and drink these sedatives, as a tincture of motherwort and valerian. Chills with high blood pressure indicate the presence of such dangerous disease like hypertension. This disease can even result in a stroke. If chills are accompanied by headache, weakness, loss of appetite, then most likely you have malaria. Usually this disease occurs after visiting exotic countries.
Diabetes mellitus and hyperthyroidism - reason No. 2
Persistent chills that occur in women may be caused by climacteric syndrome. A gynecologist knows how to alleviate the condition in this situation. However, experts state that similar symptoms appear in hyperthyroidism and diabetes mellitus. Therefore, if the above symptoms appear, you should immediately seek help from a doctor.
Digestive system - reason number 3
In case of indigestion, nausea and chills appear. It should be noted that each body reacts differently. Some feel nauseous and feverish, others feel slightly dizzy, and some experience virtually no discomfort. Therefore, when hit intestinal infection in the body, you should visit a doctor, since chills without fever are not always a manifestation of a disorder of the digestive system.
Thyroid gland - reason number 4
Persistent chills may occur if your thyroid function is low. A healthy thyroid gland secretes hormones involved in thermoregulation of the body. As its function decreases, the amount of hormones released decreases, and the person begins to experience constant feeling cold. In this case, doctors recommend:
Infection - reason number 5
Most often, chills appear when an infection enters the body. As a result, substances are formed that promote the transition of blood inside the vessels to a hot state. Subsequently, chills without fever transform into fever with high body temperature.
Raynaud's disease - cause number 6
Most often, chills are associated with a disease such as Raynaud's disease. This disease manifests itself in the form of periodic spasms of blood vessels in the hands. In this case you should:
- Protect your hands from the cold by keeping them warm at all times.
- Use special thermoelements. For example, heat these available products in the microwave and put them in mittens.
- Perform Botox injections.
Since chills without fever are a sign of numerous serious illnesses, if they occur, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Severe chills in a person are provoked by a spasm blood vessels. The person suddenly becomes very cold and trembles in the muscles. Due to spasms of the skin muscles, “goose bumps” appear. The main cause is a febrile state when the body temperature rises. This condition is typical for infection, injury and other diseases.
When chills develop, the human body produces a large amount of heat, so the body temperature rises. Once the temperature drops, the chills stop.
Chills - a syndrome or a disease?
Some people confuse and describe chills as a disease. There is no need to do this, it is only a symptom. Chills do not always appear only at high body temperatures. It can often occur in excitable people who are very worried about something. Chills may be a consequence of fright. The syndrome is neurotic; it goes away when the person relaxes and calms down.
Severe chills may be a consequence of stress, low pressure, fatigue. In women, it often appears during menstruation or worries in the first trimester of pregnancy.
Severe chills as a symptom of the disease
Most often the symptom occurs when infectious disease. When the virus is in human body, it leads to the production of pyrogens. These substances warm the body from the inside, so the body temperature can rise sharply.
Chills are one of the symptoms of a serious illness. It is possible that a patient with this symptom has an infectious or purulent inflammation, malignant tumor. If severe chills worries for several days, you need to urgently consult a specialist.
Complaints can often be heard from people with impaired peripheral circulation. Such patients live in areas where the climate is humid and cold. Under such conditions, blood circulation decreases, oxygen does not reach the fingers and toes. The skin becomes red, very itchy and swollen. When a person wants to warm up, the itching and swelling increase.
Extremities may become cold with obliterating endarteritis - vascular disease, due to which blood circulation is impaired and gangrene can develop. Chills are also common in patients with diabetes.
Chills and a constant feeling of cold indicate that the function of the thyroid gland is reduced. If everything is fine with a person, endocrine system provides thermoregulation of the body. When certain hormones are lacking, a person is constantly tormented by cold. Symptoms are most often observed in women over 50 years of age during menopause.
Please note if you have these symptoms:
- Hair fall out.
- You get tired quickly.
- Mood changes often.
- You gain weight sharply.
- The skin became dry.
If you have at least a few of these symptoms and are experiencing chills, be sure to get tested for your thyroid hormone levels.
Sudden chills may occur in patients with vegetative-vascular dystonia. Such people feel cold even in a hot room. When the disease occurs, thermoregulation is impaired. In this clinical situation, it is necessary to take the following measures:
- Visit baths and saunas.
- Take a contrast shower.
- Pay attention to winter swimming.
- Take a massage course.
All the above methods can be used if you have healthy heart!
If chills are felt in the hands, one may suspect Raynaud's syndrome - periodic vascular spasm in the extremities. In some situations it is strong, the fingers turn white or even turn blue. For preventive purposes, your hands should always be warm; for this, wear mittens, gloves, and give them baths.
Causes of chills without fever
Please note that often viral infection begins without fever, but with chills. This is how the body reacts to the disease. This is a signal that urgent action needs to be taken. Effective preventive method for chills during ARVI, use warm tea with the addition of raspberries, honey and lemon. If you are preparing tea, keep in mind that raspberries are not brewed with boiling water; they are added when the water cools down, otherwise they will lose all their beneficial substances.
When a person constantly refuses to eat normally and uses different diets, everything can end with chills. Remember that beauty requires sacrifice, but this negatively affects your health. Therefore, review your diet and eliminate harmful products nutrition. You need to eat food often and in small quantities.
How to get rid of severe chills?
If the chills are due to excitement, you need to take a deep breath and exhale. This condition is a blood reaction to produced enzymes. Has a positive effect on nervous system Valerian tincture. Often you can’t get carried away with the drug, it is addictive.
Helps relieve chills Herb tea. For it you can use lemon balm, chamomile, mint, sage. You can add honey or sugar to tea. If the chills are related to the thyroid gland, the patient needs complex treatment You may need to take hormonal medications.
Remember that chills are a protective reaction of the body; they improve blood circulation. When a symptom is accompanied by high fever, aches, severe headaches, and fatigue, it is necessary to take an antipyretic. You can use complex preparations - Rinzasip with vitamin C, Rinza. They contain a large number of active ingredients that relieve chills, runny nose, weakness, and headache.
Thus, many are accustomed to the fact that severe chills always accompany high fever. This is wrong! Chills can be provoked by more serious illnesses. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to this symptom in a timely manner. It is dangerous when chills are a sign of endocrinological disorders, a consequence of stress. No need to bring yourself to nervous exhaustion. It is necessary to eat well; your diet should contain foods containing large amounts of vitamins. This will help prevent chills in the future.
