Journal of Applied Physiology, Vol 76, Issue 1 72-78, Copyright © 1994 by American Physiological Society

ARTICLES

Response to rest and exercise in the cold: effects of age and aerobic fitness

B. Falk, O. Bar-Or, J. Smolander and G. Frost
Children's Exercise and Nutrition Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

The aim of this study was to determine whether age-related differences in the response to cold exposure are due to aging per se or are caused by a reduced maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) often observed with aging. Three groups of men, 8 young adults (YA), 8 well-trained seniors (TS), and 11 untrained seniors (US), were tested on a cycle ergometer in thermoneutral (22 degrees C) and cold (5 degrees C) conditions during rest and then during exercise (approximately 50 W). In the thermoneutral conditions, 10 min of rest were followed by 10 min of exercise. After 60 min of rest, subjects entered the cold where 30 min of rest were followed by 30 min exercise. The subjects of the three groups had similar body surface area and subcutaneous fat thickness. It was found that rectal temperature (Tre) decreased during rest in the cold and continued to decrease at a higher rate during exercise in TS and US but not in YA. The mean skin temperature was similar in all the groups, except for the thigh temperature, which was lower in YA than in TS and US. Oxygen uptake (VO2) increased during cold, significantly more so at rest than during exercise. YA displayed the highest VO2 during the first 10 min of rest in the cold, whereas TS displayed the highest VO2 during exercise in the cold. Neither aging nor VO2max appeared to affect thermal comfort or cold sensation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. W. DeGroot and W. L. Kenney Impaired defense of core temperature in aged humans during mild cold stress Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol, January 1, 2007; 292(1): R103 - R108. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. W. DeGroot, G. Havenith, and W. L. Kenney Responses to mild cold stress are predicted by different individual characteristics in young and older subjects J Appl Physiol, December 1, 2006; 101(6): 1607 - 1615. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. E. Wilson, K. D. Monahan, D. S. Short, and C. A. Ray Effect of age on cutaneous vasoconstrictor responses to norepinephrine in humans Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol, November 1, 2004; 287(5): R1230 - R1234. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. Klentrou, M. Cunliffe, J. Slack, B. Wilk, O. Bar-Or, M. J. De Souza, and M. Plyley Temperature regulation during rest and exercise in the cold in premenarcheal and menarcheal girls J Appl Physiol, April 1, 2004; 96(4): 1393 - 1398. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				W. L. Kenney and T. A. Munce Invited Review: Aging and human temperature regulation J Appl Physiol, December 1, 2003; 95(6): 2598 - 2603. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. FLOREZ-DUQUET and R. B. McDONALD Cold-Induced Thermoregulation and Biological Aging Physiol Rev, April 1, 1998; 78(2): 339 - 358. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]