or is it just me?

00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:10,620 Hey everyone! Thanks for watching DNews

I'm Julia. And I'm Trace

Humans are warm blooded, so you would think that

we would be warm all the time,

but that's actually not what warm blooded means.

There are those of us who are, well, cold all

the time. But that doesn't mean we're cold blooded.

Cold blooded animal's body temperatures

are subject to the temperature of the room they're

in, whether that's the forest,

sitting in the sun, or hanging out in the cozy

kitchen. On the other hand, warm blooded

animals have the ability to internally

regulate their body temperatures, independent

of their environment. It's called being

homeothermic, and it's common in

mammals. Humans average around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit,

cats and dogs have around 101

or 102. Dolphins are around 95.

Lions are over 102,

but note that I said "average".

Body temperatures can range, and in humans

women are usually colder than men

and older people are colder than younger.

Temperature regulation starts in the

brain and is controlled by hormones.

The brain takes into account the body's core

temperature and the temperature of the

outer skin. Fatter people tend

to feel warmer because their core

organs are all toasty. Though

their extremities are colder. While

people with lower BMI's tend to feel

colder because blood pumped through the extremities

needs to be really warmed up

when it gets back. Warming the blood is the

major way we can regulate our internal

temperatures. When thermoregulator cells

in our skin detect a cold environment

they constrict our capillaries and blood vessels

in a process called vasoconstriction.

This can cause the flow to slow as little

as 0.02 liters per minute

in the far-flung parts of the body,

the highest can be 2-3 meters per

minute. The lack of warm blood is what

makes my hand and feet cold,

and yours too.

Yes, which of course has to do with the amount

of body fat, but also has to do that

women's bodies work harder to keep their core

body temperatures up, in comparison

to men. This leaves fewer energy

resources to warm the extremities.

Human biology dictates that men tend to

have more muscle mass and women tend to have

more fat. The working of muscle

generates heat, while fat cells store it.

Researchers at the University of Utah

measured the temperatures of men and women's

hands and found men's hands

were 90 degrees on average, while

women's were 87.2

And a study in The Lancet found the

hormone estrogen is part of this

temperature regulation system too,

which is a whole other bag of

cats. During the menstrual cycle,

a woman's body can change as much as 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit,

which is a huge difference when you're talking about the

core temperature of a human.

Age, diet, exercise and sleep will

also effect body temperatures

and the amount of warm blood getting to our extremities.

People who are more active tend to have

warmer hands and feet overall than those

who don't. People who smoke have more vasoconstriction

cooling the extremities. When you fall asleep

women's body temperatures lower more

rapidly than men's. Of course

some of this is person to person

dependent. My feet are frozen

at night, but during the day

I'm always hot. And it's

not even just about being physically hot,

it's also our perception of temperature

which affects our feelings of

whether we're hot. Right! If you're surrounded

by people you are comfortable with you'll feel

warmer. Also, a Canadian study

found people who are lonely or feel

isolated are more aware of a

cold body temperature, while socially

connected people tend to feel

warmer. That's true. What about you guys,

are you always hot? Are you always cold?

Let us know down in the comments. Make sure you subscribe

as well to DNews, so you can get more of this

everyday! Also, check out this video

over here about whether shivering

could help you lose weight.

Thanks for watching DNews, see you later, guys!

See you next time!