Module 4: Skin Physiology - Skin Thermoregulation

SKIN THERMOREGULATION:

The skin is crucial for body temperature control. Heat is lost from the body as radiant energy, and to a lesser extent via convection and conduction. The many vascular shunts in the skin allow for increased or decreased blood flow to the skin surface and subsequent increased or decreased heat loss to the environment by any of these routes.

Sweating is a vital factor in maintaining the core temperature within a narrow range as evaporation of the secretion from the surface of the skin cools the individual.

The body surface hair also has a role in temperature control. Heat loss or gain is influenced by the trapping of a static layer of air around the body that acts as an insulator.