This Is Why Women Feel The Cold More Than Men

In case you hadn't noticed, it's been pretty chilly of late - just look at what happened to Chicago - but apparently some people feel the cold a bit more than others.

There could in fact be a very good reason why your wife or girlfriend is always asking you to whack up the heating or turn the fire on.

A study by two Dutch scientists found that women simply feel the cold much more easily than men and are more susceptible to lower temperatures.

The published paper suggested that women are comfortable at a temperature 2.5C warmer than men, which is around 24 to 25C.

But why?

Professor Paul Thornalley, from Warwick Medical School, has put it down to differences in the average metabolic rate and how much heat men and women produce.

He says this 'may explain why there is a difference in environmental temperature required for comfort between males and females'.

PA

A person's metabolism is responsible for producing energy, including heat, as well as growth.

The resting metabolic rate is minimal level of energy a person expends while we are at rest, and the average woman has a lower metabolic rate than men.

Prof Thornally told the BBC: "A great determinant of resting metabolic rates is the fat free body mass in people's bodies."

He says this accounts for up to 60 per cent in the difference in the sexes, because as men have more 'fat free body mass', such as bones and muscle, their resting rates are much higher.

Another reason is something called 'brown fat', which is where the body produces heat involuntarily, a process called thermogensis.

Brown fat is often found in the neck and shoulders but it can vary from person to person. In a recent study, Aaron Cypess, head of the Diabetes, Endocrinology and Obesity Branch at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, found it in the chests and down the spines of some young men.

And because men have a higher proportion of body mass which is able to produce heat, they don't feel the cold as easily as women.

But it's not all bad news, as it also means that during those warm summer months men are much more sensitive to hot weather, because they have a higher metabolic rate which means they get warmer quicker.

Topics: Weather, World News, Interesting, Health

Dominic Smithers

Dominic graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History. Like you, Dom has often questioned how much use a second language has been. Well, after stints working at the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express, along with never setting foot in France, he realised the answer is surprisingly little. But I guess, c'est la vie. Contact us at [email protected]

@SmithersDom