# Association of thermal perceptions, metabolic rate, clothing, and local skin temperature in people with cold constitution in air-conditioned office environments

## TL;DR

This study explores how people with a cold constitution feel colder in offices and finds they have lower metabolism and skin temperatures.

## Contribution

The study identifies specific correlations between cold constitution, metabolic rate, and thermal perceptions in office environments.

## Key findings

- Females and individuals with lower BMI are more likely to have cold constitution.
- The CC group had lower metabolic rates and lower distal skin temperatures.
- Thermal sensation remained significantly linked to cold constitution after adjusting for gender and BMI.

## Abstract

Cold constitution refers to a phenomenon in which individuals have a higher sensitivity to cold and feel colder than others. This research aimed to examine the associations of morphological characteristics, personal factors, thermal perceptions, and local skin temperature (tsk) with cold constitution by conducting a field experiment. It also explored differences in these aspects between individuals with and without cold constitution, in a thermoneutral office environment during summer and winter, and in 89 and 75 sedentary workers, respectively. A questionnaire survey was conducted to classify the cold constitution (CC) and non-cold constitution (NC) groups. The results indicated that females and individuals with lower body mass index (BMI) were more likely to have cold constitution. The CC group exhibited a significantly lower metabolic rate (M) in both seasons, lower thermal sensation votes, warmer thermal preference, and a greater predicted percentage of dissatisfied in summer (p < 0.01). No significant differences were observed in clothing insulation between the groups; however, winter clothing was significantly higher compared to summer for both groups (p < 0.01). Furthermore, the CC group exhibited significantly lower local skin temperatures at distal body parts (p < 0.01). Significant correlations were observed for gender, BMI, M, thermal sensations, and distal tsk with cold constitution. Adjusting the effects of gender and BMI, most correlations with cold constitution weakened. However, thermal sensation remained significant in summer, while no correlation was observed with tsk. These findings emphasize the significant associations of morphological characteristics, personal factors, and thermal perceptions with cold constitution and show the importance of assessing the thermal environment.