When it gets too hot, humans sweat, when it gets too cold, they shiver. How does the body regulate its internal temperature at those mild climates where a person can wear anything from a few layers to nothing at all without feeling a major shift in comfort level?
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Your body has something called a “thermostat” just like your house does. The thermostat in your body is called your “hypothalamus” and it helps to keep your body at the right temperature.
When your body gets too hot, your hypothalamus tells your body to sweat. Sweat helps to cool your body down as it evaporates (turns from a liquid into a gas). This is why you feel cooler when you sweat on a hot day.
When your body gets too cold, your hypothalamus tells your body to do things to keep you warm. For example, you might shiver to create heat, or your body might start to make more heat by burning calories from food.
At mild temperatures, your body is pretty good at regulating its own temperature, so you probably don’t need to worry too much about getting too hot or too cold. But if you start to feel too hot or too cold, you can always add or remove layers of clothing or go somewhere with a different temperature to help your body feel more comfortable.
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