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  • Essay / Human thermoregulation: physiological and behavioral...

    The incrine sweat glands are located under the skin and are responsible for the secretion of sweat. While the hair on our skin prevents heat from being trapped by a still layer of air due to the relaxation of the hair arrector muscles under the skin. This will only happen if the ambient temperature is higher than the core body temperature in response to heat loss and therefore cooling of the body. Also under these conditions, the human body undergoes what is called arteriolar vasodilation. Arteriolar vasodilation occurs when the cell walls of the arteries are relaxed compared to cold conditions where they are restricted. Due to the relaxation of cell walls, blood flow around your body also increases redirection of blood through superficial capillaries where covention and conduction occurs to reduce body temperature. In contrast, when the body experiences cold conditions, we can assume that the opposite would occur in warm conditions. An example of this hypothesis is that in hot conditions, when we sweat profusely, in cold conditions sweat production decreases. Another example is that the erector pili muscles under the skin relax in hot weather whereas, like in cold weather, they contract, allowing the hair follicle to straighten. Consequently to