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Low Body Temperature and Sweating



 Submitted by Nick on December 16, 2010
In humans, normal body temperatures vary from 97.5°F to 98.8°F, although the standard medical threshold is 98.8°F. In most individuals, body temperature will vary by a degree or less, during the day, depending on the atmospheric temperature and the kind of activity undertaken. If you work out at the gym, all the increased activity speeds up the metabolic rate; a faster metabolism produces heat, making the body’s temperature rise. If the atmosphere around is humid, this causes the body to sweat resulting in low body temperature and antiperspirants may not be effective. However, low body temperature and sweating could indicate that there is a problem with the hypothalamus, which plays a vital role in regulating the temperature in the human body. If you have a low body temperature and experience excess sweating, you should consider getting yourself checked. When an individual is exposed to a cold environment, the body’s thermoregulatory mechanism swings into action to ensure that the temperature does not go dangerously low, resulting in fatal hypothermia. The blood vessels close to the skin constrict to prevent the body from losing more heat and the hairs on the skin stand up, giving goose bumps. Shivering and chattering of teeth are other symptoms that accompany low body temperature due to exposure. Direct exposure to heat is not advisable in such cases, and the body warmth should be brought back by ingesting hot liquids like soups or milk and rubbing the palms and feet to improve circulation.

Low body temperature and perspiration could also be caused by hypothyroidism and other metabolic disorders. Fatigue and exhaustion make the body feel weak and stressed out. Very often women associate low body temperature and sweating to hot flushes that they experience during menopause, without realizing that the problem is caused by their thyroid gland. Sepsis or a severe bacterial infection could also be the cause for low body temperature and sweating. Sepsis affects all the major organs in the body including the central nervous system, and in some cases, pushes the body into shock.

Wilson’s temperature syndrome is a condition where low body temperature and sweating as a result of stress is noticed, and the body is slow to recover its normal temperature. Treatment includes giving T3 thyroid hormone to supplement the body’s production and giving the body time to rest and reset its thyroid hormone production. Body temperature is one aspect that can have an effect on all the biochemical reactions in the body, and hence, low body temperature and sweating is a condition that needs to be treated.
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