It's a common observation that women often prefer warmer temperatures and feel cold more easily than men do, and the same trend appears among females of other species. Now, a study offers new clues as to what drives this preference — and testosterone may play a part.
Skin carries sensors to detect heat and cold that influence each organism's decision to stay in or move out of an environment. The new study, published Oct. 28 in the Journal of Physiology, found that these sensors activate at higher temperatures in female mice, which appears to shift their preferred temperature roughly 7 degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius) higher than that of male mice. Testosterone seems to influence this difference in activation.