Cardiovascular Stress and Characteristics of Cold-Induced Vasodilation in Women and Men during Cold-Water Immersion: A Randomized Control Study
by
, , , , and
Lydia Tsoutsoubi
1
,
Leonidas G. Ioannou
1,
Konstantinos Mantzios
1,
Styliani Ziaka
1,
Lars Nybo
2 and
Andreas D. Flouris
1,*
1
FAME Laboratory, Department of Physical Education and Sport Science, University of Thessaly, 42100 Trikala, Greece
2
Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, August Krogh Building, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Biology 2022, 11(7), 1054; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11071054
Submission received: 23 May 2022
/
Revised: 3 July 2022
/
Accepted: 5 July 2022
/
Published: 13 July 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Environmental Factors on Human Health and Performance)
Simple Summary
Cold-induced vasodilation is a phenomenon that refers to a paradoxical increase in finger temperature that sometimes occurs during cold exposure. Differences between sexes in cold-induced vasodilation have been explored in only a handful of studies. These studies investigated finger skin temperature but did not evaluate toe skin temperature, blood flow in the fingers or toes, clothing, as well as potential underlying mechanisms of cutaneous vasomotion. On the whole, our knowledge on the potential impacts of sex differences on CIVD is limited and this may have important implications for workers and how they cope with exposure to cold environments. The aim of the study was to investigate and compare cold-induced vasodilation and other cardiovascular responses between genders, during exposure to different environmental conditions. The present study demonstrated that women experienced elevated cardiovascular strain and higher frequency of CIVD reactions, particularly in the toes, compared to their male counterparts during cold-water immersion.
Abstract
Background: Cold-induced vasodilation (CIVD) is a phenomenon that refers to a paradoxical increase in finger temperature that sometimes occurs during cold exposure. The aim of this study was to compare CIVD responses between women and men, during exposure to different environmental conditions. Methods: Seven men and seven women participated in a matched controlled study consisting of a familiarization protocol followed by three experimental sessions (cool (10.8 °C WBGT), thermoneutral (17.2 °C WBGT), and hot (27.2 °C WBGT)). In each session, participants were asked to immerse their left hand and foot in warm water (35 ± 1 °C) for five minutes. Thereafter, the left hand and foot were immersed in cold water (8 ± 1 °C) for 40 min. After that, the left hand and foot were removed from the water and participants remained seated for five minutes. Results: For a matched thermal stress, women experienced an elevated cardiovascular strain (heart rate and in some cases mean arterial pressure) and higher frequency of CIVD reactions (men: 31 vs. women: 60) in comparison to their male counterparts. Conclusions: The present study demonstrated that women experienced elevated cardiovascular strain and higher frequency of CIVD reactions, particularly in the toes, compared to their male counterparts during cold-water immersion.
Keywords:
CIVD; sex; gender; water immersion; heart rate; sweat rate; core temperature; skin temperature; mean arterial pressure; pain
