When ice is applied to an injured area, blood clotting occurs. What may be the possible reason behind this?
1 Answer
Blood clotting is the bodies response to injury rather than to application of ice itself.
Explanation:
When tissue is damaged through an injury, it activates fragments in cells such as platelets and proteins in blood plasma to stop the injury from bleeding - forming clots also known as coagulation process.
Another part is, when blood is cold or senses a change in temperature it constricts - this is a part of the homeostatic process in the body wanting to maintain a stable internal environment. For example, if it's cold outside and you go for a walk the body sense's a change in temperature, the blood constricts (vasoconstriction) and prevents warm blood flow to the skin which is why skin looks pale when it is cold. (www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_ocr_pre.../bodytemprev4.shtml)
So, icing of an injury would slow down the inflammatory process/blood flow to the site of the injury (further reducing the extent of bruising etc.,) and this would also be aided by the bodies natural clotting process too.
