To be warmed up through your fingertips

For this post let us imagine that we are among the rescuers in circumstances similar to those after the Titanic disaster. We would need to help people that have been exposed to cold water for too long. How would we warm them up? Would it be enough for them to touch something warm with their fingertips to survive? Something really warm or burning hot? Although this may be a matter of myth busting, but it is unlikely that this procedure alone would rewarm their bodies enough to stay alive. It would rather burn their fingertips. Why would we want to use such an ineffective method in the first place? Due to their small cross-section it is simply not possible to move adequate heat through our fingers to warm up the entire body in a reasonable timeframe. The paths for heat to enter deeper in the body are simply too narrow.

In one of my last posts (Pitfalls of insulin delivery) I wrote about the specialized delivery system which is a big avenue that makes sure that insulin level in the liver is high. Delivering insulin from the outside on the other hand is using smaller paths, causing excessive local concentration of insulin, delayed action, poorer control of cell metabolism in the liver, excessive drop in blood glucose or development of insulin tolerance. Again, why would we want to use such an ineffective delivery system? At the moment this route seems to be the only one compatible with the chemical properties of insulin. However, even if we could eat it, use it as a nasal spray, as a suppository, as a skin crème or eye drops, the paths to the liver and other tissues would not get any bigger and would not solve the delivery issue. On the other hand, a skin crème does boost cell vitality if applied locally, for example on non-healing wounds.

It is much easier to rewarm a person that is not too cold. Already holding a cup of warm tea helps a lot. Similarly, less insulin one needs better is the efficiency of the existing but non-ideal insulin treatment. A narrow waist, some visible and hungry muscles are a great start.