Body temperature

As Body temperature is the temperature of the human or animal body. Depending on the species and genus, body temperature, which is considered normal, may fluctuate. In humans, the average body temperature is 37 degrees Celsius.

What is the body temperature?

Medicine and research understand body temperature to be the temperature of a human or animal body. This temperature differs depending on the species and genus. Birds have one of the highest normal body temperatures with an average body temperature of 40 degrees Celsius, while humans belong to the mammal species with the lowest average core temperature. However, the normal body temperature is always different within a species and is subject to various fluctuations.

In addition, the measured temperature fluctuates depending on where on the body it is measured. In humans, this core temperature, i.e. the temperature inside the body, is usually between 36.5 and 37.5 degrees Celsius.

The average human body temperature is lowest in the morning and highest in the early evening (around 6 p.m.).

In addition, it is not only the measuring point that affects the determined temperature, but also various external factors. Temperature fluctuations can be influenced by the ambient temperature, the time of day and physical activity.

In addition to the core body temperature, there is also the so-called surface temperature of the body, which is usually between 28 and 33 degrees Celsius in humans, depending on the area of ​​the body.

Function & task

For ease of understanding, body temperature could also be referred to as the operating temperature of the body. As a rule, the vital metabolic processes of the organism can only run smoothly if the core of the body is at a certain temperature. Too low a value is often just as detrimental to the proper functioning of the body as too high a temperature.

Although body temperature is always subject to different factors and fluctuates minimally to strongly from person to person, the average human body temperature in a healthy state is around 37 degrees Celsius (37 ° C for short). The surface temperature mentioned is only relevant in a few medical cases.

In most cases, the core temperature of humans or animals is referred to (i.e. the temperature inside the body) when the body temperature is spoken of. Because it is she who influences the vital processes in the body.

It fluctuates throughout the day for everyone and is influenced by physical activity, the time of year, stress and also by medication and certain foods (such as beverages containing caffeine).

In addition, the hormone level also has an effect on the core body temperature, as is the case, for example, in women during ovulation - during this time, the woman's body temperature is usually on average half a degree Celsius higher than it is during the rest of the cycle.

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Illnesses & ailments

If the body temperature is too low, the organism cannot work properly any more than if the temperature is too high. In both cases, various vital substances are destroyed.

A common and well-known cause of an increase in the body's core temperature is fever. Body temperatures that exceed 38 degrees Celsius are called fevers. This is a defense reaction of the body with which it fights living microorganisms or foreign substances in its own organism.

Fever is divided into the following stages: light fever (38 to 38.5 ° C), fever (38.6 to 39 ° C), high fever (39.1 to 39.9 ° C) and very high fever (40 to 42 ° C) C) staggered. Frequent triggers of fever in humans and animals are inflammation, tumors and trauma. However, a sharp rise in body temperature can also be a side effect of other diseases. On the other hand, a well-known disease that causes low temperatures is an underactive thyroid.

At high temperatures, which exceed a body temperature of 40 degrees Celsius for a long time, the body's own proteins are structurally changed. This process is called denaturation in medicine and it costs the proteins their function. As a result, an increased body temperature can lead to organ and tissue damage.

A core body temperature that exceeds 42 degrees Celsius causes a circulatory collapse and is considered life-threatening. Therefore, it should be treated immediately in the hospital. A body temperature that exceeds 44 degrees Celsius can lead to death.

If the body temperature falls below normal temperature, the body's oxygen consumption is reduced. A wide variety of vital metabolic processes in the organism also suffer from this. A so-called sub-temperature can also be caused by illnesses, but above all by strong external effects of cold.

Frequent examples of causes of a low temperature are staying too long in too cold water. If the body temperature drops below 27 degrees Celsius, medicine speaks of life-threatening hypothermia, as the pulse and breathing are throttled here and breathing or cardiovascular arrest can occur. If the body temperature falls below 20 degrees Celsius, this leads to death.