Relationship between body fat and shivering in air at 15 C

Abstract

Thirty-one men of widely varying body fat content were exposed to air at 15.2 C for 2 hr. Rectal and skin temperatures and metabolic rates were measured at 10, 40, and 80 min and at the end of the 2 hr. Shivering was rated on a five-interval scale. Under these conditions thick subcutaneous fat provided insulation as indicated by lower skin temperatures, less shivering, and lower oxygen consumption in the fatter men. The findings rule out simple relationships between measured temperatures and shivering, leading to other possibilities and approaches to the study of shivering. Submitted on October 3, 1960