Come and talk to our Occupational Therapy team about clothing solutions. We have a selection of clothes that you can see, a lot of information about suppliers and may years experience of helping people to solve practical clothing conundrums. If temperature regulation is difficult then choosing clothes to keep you warm or cool can help.
Ordinary clothes cannot create warmth, they can only maintain your body warmth by providing an insulating layer to keep warm air close to the body, and a protective layer to hold warm air in and prevent cold air coming in.
Natural fibres make good heat retainers and insulators but modern fabric technology is creating new fibres to maintain regular body temperature and retain warmth. We have samples and information from companies like Patra who make silk or wool underwear to help retain heat.
Many thin layers of loose easy to put on clothes are better than one thick layer as it makes dressing quicker and you can move more easily to generate body heat.
Legs represent over one third of our body surface area so it is important to trap their warmth in with long johns or tights.
On average 20% of heat is lost through a person’s head so, wearing a hat in the day or at night will help to maintain body warmth.
We can’t afford to lose the body heat that we build up at night so even on a quick trip to the loo it is wise to put on slippers and dressing gown. Poncho or cape style gowns may be easier to get on and off at night.
When outside maintain your body warmth with hats, scarves, and gloves. Coats should be as wind proof as possible. Showerproof outer garments such as raincoats and skiwear worn over insulating layers, offer a much greater resistance to the wind than a traditional winter coat or jacket.