Physiological and perceptual responses in the elderly to simulated daily living activities in UK summer climatic conditions

Abstract

When completing exercise that equates to activities of daily living, elderly people could have a decreased perceptual awareness of the environment even though physiological markers of thermal strain are elevated. Consequently, the elderly could be less likely to implement behavioural thermoregulation interventions (i.e. seek shade and/or remove excess layers) due to a decreased awareness of an increasingly thermally challenging environment.

Body mapping of regional sweat distribution in young and older males

“…This was especially evident for the period when applying the absorbent pads and stretch clothing to the skin, as the younger group reported a significant rise in thermal sensation and became more uncomfortable, whereas the older group did not. The inability to report a change in thermal sensation and comfort when adding a layer of clothing highlights the vulnerability of older individuals in warm conditions and supports the previous evidence of a reduced whole body thermal sensitivity (Natsume et al 1992;Taylor et al 1995;Tochihara et al 2011;Takeda et al 2016) and thermal comfort (Natsume et al 1992;Taylor et al 1995;Waldock et al 2018) in the aged.…”

“…The increased heat strain observed in the older group is a result of a decreased ability to dissipate heat through vasomotor adjustments and sweating and has been observed in numerous previous studies, albeit not implementing fixed heat production protocols (Anderson and Kenney 1987;Sagawa et al 1988;Inoue et al 1991;Dufour and Candas 2007;Smith et al 2013a). The rise in T gi observed does not seem threatening under controlled laboratory conditions; however, many older individuals typically spend longer durations exposed to heat stress than in this study, especially during the summer months, and thus are at increased risk of heat-induced illnesses and injury (Waldock et al 2018).…”

“…The combination of impaired autonomic and behavioural responses further increases the susceptibility of the older population and is a cause for concern in the current climate (Kenney et al 2014;Waldock et al 2018).…”

Aging and Thermoregulatory Control: The Clinical Implications of Exercising under Heat Stress in Older Individuals

“…An important challenge for this field of research, and perhaps the most imperative, is to avoid older individuals from becoming discouraged from partaking in regular exercise [ 82 ]. Indeed, the health benefits associated with exercise still far outweigh the consequences of not performing exercise purely as a means to escape the potentially detrimental effects of hot weather [ 82 ].…”

“…An important challenge for this field of research, and perhaps the most imperative, is to avoid older individuals from becoming discouraged from partaking in regular exercise [ 82 ]. Indeed, the health benefits associated with exercise still far outweigh the consequences of not performing exercise purely as a means to escape the potentially detrimental effects of hot weather [ 82 ]. Whilst current public health guidelines provide information on recommended levels of physical activity with associated long- and short-term beneficial outcomes, there are no recommendations regarding the levels of physical activity specifically for older individuals that can be safely performed in the heat (i.e., the summer months and bouts of hot weather) [ 15 , 16 ].…”