Environmental Factors and Other Issues with Exercise Flashcards
Core body temperature
Core body temperature ranges between 97°F and 100° F
Core body temperatures are generally lowest during sleep and highest during exercise or with exposure to hot environments
The ___ in the brain is the coordinating center for temperature regulation and acts much like an internal thermostat
preoptic/anterior hypothalamus (POAH)
preoptic/anterior hypothalamus (POAH)
initiates responses to reduce increases in core body temperature
When it perceives heat, it strives to increase heat loss through peripheral vasodilation of blood vessels, which redistributes blood carrying heat toward the periphery
When it perceives cold, it strives to decrease heat loss through peripheral vasoconstriction of blood vessels, which redistributes blood toward the core
Core temperature tolerance ranges.
limits of survival: 73.5-80.5 F
cold exposure: 80.5-97 F
normal range: 97-100 F
heat exposure: 100-105.8 F
heat stroke: 105.8-111 F
limits of survival: 111-115
Factors Affecting Heat Gain
Resting metabolism (RMR)
Muscle activity
Hormones and nervous activity
Thermic effect of food
Non-exercise thermogenesis (NEAT) anything not sleeping, sports or exercise related
Warm environments
The body’s thermoregulatory mechanisms that primarily protect against overheating at rest and during exercise:
conduction
evaporation
convection
radiation
All but evaporation are considered “dry Heat exchange”
resistance to dry heat exchange is called “insulation”
conduction
The exchange or transfer of heat from warmer objects to cooler objects via direct molecular contact
Its contribution to heat dissipation during land-based exercise is very small
Its contribution to heat removal when the body is immersed in water is significant
conduction depends on the following variables:
The thermal gradient (i.e., the temperature difference between the two surfaces)
The thermal properties of the two surfaces, objects, or mediums in contact
evaporation
transfer of heat when a liquid changes physical states by becoming gas, a process that requires energy to vaporize the liquid
ex) sweat evaporating off skin
As the vapor (gas) leaves the skin surface, so will the heat.
> Sweat must evaporate in order for heat to leave the body
The effectiveness of sweat evaporation from the skin depends on:
> Temperature gradient - when it is hot out, gradient is small so efficiency is reduced, and you need to sweat to thermoregulate
> Relative humidity of the surrounding air
> The amount of skin surface area exposed to the environment to facilitate sweat removal from the body
> Convective air currents that lift the vapor into the surrounding air
Not all sweat is lost to the environment
> Sweat that drips off the body does not contribute to cooling but does contribute to fluid losses and dehydration
high humidity =
air cannot readily accept more water vapor
convection
Its contribution to heat removal when the body is immersed in water is significant
Convection contributes more significantly to heat loss during land-based exercises performed on breezy or windy days
Heat removal dependent on the movement between the 2 surfaces and the thermal gradient:
Greater movement and larger thermal gradients exchange heat more rapidly
Ex: air current from a fan will remove more warm air from the skin surface
Treading water lightly facilitates rapid heat loss given the thermal properties of water, while active swimming generates adequate metabolic heat to offset this convective heat loss
radiation
involves the passage of electromagnetic heat waves moving along a temperature gradient from a warm or hot object into a cooler object
Ex. the sun’s rays warming the Earth at sunrise, or heat coming off tar streets in summer
The human body constantly radiates heat through skin into the surrounding cooler environment and any objects surrounding the body, while simultaneously ____
receiving heat from warmer objects surrounding it
Sweat and energy expenditure
A calorie: a unit of energy…
the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water through 1 °C is equal to one thousand small calories and often used to measure the energy value of foods
For each liter of sweat lost, the body removes approximately 580 kcal (kilocalorie) (2,428 kJ) of heat
Excretion
involves the loss of heat via any materials excreted from the body
- gaseous (air exhalation)
- liquid (urine)
- solid (feces)
accounts for significant fluid removal from the body considering daily urine output, fluid volume contained in feces, and the estimated additional 300 mL of fluid lost through the mucous membranes of the respiratory passages
Women lose heat quicker than men in cold temperatures
Evaporation depends on the availability of fluid within the body, so ____
fluid lost to excretion may influence sweat rates
Factors That Influence Thermoregulation
Gender
Age
Body size and composition
Conditioning level
Hydration status
Clothing
Environmental factors
Gender =
> females less lean mass, less body water, have larger surface area/body mass ratios (more fat mass, less lean ms mass) favoring dry heat exchange vs sweating, and lose heat quicker than men in cold temps
> women have more % body fat, and can tolerate mild cold exposure better than men
Age =
> children sweat at lower rates because of smaller quantities of body water
Older adults are also more susceptible to the hot and cold stress =
> Dehydration (bc of a diminished sense of thirst)
> Loss of subcutaneous fat tissue to insulate
> Loss of muscle tissue to generate heat
> Potential cognitive losses associated with aging
> Changes within the skin layer
> Reduced thermoregulatory efficiency
> Medication usage that can affect hydration status
Body size and composition
> Muscle tissue capable of generating heat
> Both muscle mass and body fat offer insulation
> Larger surface areas dissipate heat quicker
> Less muscle generates less heat
Conditioning level
With increased fitness: Increased blood volume, improved circulation of blood to skin/periphery during exercise, increased sweat rates, reduced core temperature threshold to initiate sweating
Thermoregulation in Hot Environments
Warmer skin surface temperatures are detected by the peripheral receptors that stimulate both the POAH and cerebral cortex
Increases in blood temperature are identified by central receptors that activate sympathetic nervous system (SNS) responses from the POAH
The POAH stimulates an SNS response to the smooth muscles that encircle the surface arterioles to vasodilate and bring more blood (which is carrying heat) to the skin’s surface
The POAH stimulates an SNS response to initiate sweat production