Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2026

A Preclinical Model of Exertional Heat Stroke in Mice
Published on: July 1, 2021
Effects of alcohol on thermoregulation during mild heat exposure in humans
Tamae Yoda1, Larry I Crawshaw, Mayumi Nakamura
1Advanced Research Center for Human Sciences, Waseda University, Mikajima 2-579-15, Tokorozawa 359-1192, Japan. yoda@aoni.waseda.jp
Abstract:
We investigated the effects of alcohol on thermoregulatory responses and thermal sensations during mild heat exposure in humans. Eight healthy men participated in this study. Experiments were conducted twice for each subject at a room temperature of 33 degrees C. After a 30-min resting period, the subject drank either 15% alcohol (alcohol session) at a dose of 0.36 g/kg body weight or equal volume of water (control session). Skin blood flow and chest sweat rate in the alcohol session significantly increased over those in controls 10 min after drinking. Deep body temperature in the alcohol session started to decrease 20 min after the onset of sweating and eventually fell 0.3 degrees C lower than in the controls. Whole body hot sensation transiently increased after alcohol drinking, whereas it changed little after water drinking. The increased "hot" sensation would presumably cause cool-seeking behavior, if permitted. Thus, alcohol influences thermoregulation so that body core temperature is lowered not only by automatic mechanisms (sweating and skin vasodilation) but also behaviorally. These results suggest that decreases in body temperature after alcohol drinking are not secondary to skin vasodilation, a well-known effect of alcohol, but rather result from a decrease in the regulated body temperature evidenced by the coordinated modulation of various effectors of thermoregulation and sensation.
Related Concept Videos
Body Temperature
Body Temperature
The average body temperature is approximately 37°C (98.6°F) and typically ranges from 36.1–37.2°C (97–99°F), remaining relatively stable...
Decreased Body Temperature
Factors Affecting Body Temperature
Factors may include:
Homeostatic Imbalances in Body Temperature
Increased Body Temperature

