Comparison of thermal responses between young children (1- to 3-year-old) and mothers during cold exposure.

To investigate thermal responses of children during cold exposure, children and their mothers were exposed to identical environmental conditions in climatic chambers. Subjects comprised 14 mothers (age, 29-40 years) and 15 children (age, 15 months-3 years; 9 boys, 6 girls). Each mother and child wore a t-shirt and short pants over underwear.

Environmental and behavioral conditions of bathing among elderly Japanese.

This study investigated the bathing conditions of elderly Japanese, and sought to find factors relating to regional differences in death rates from bathtub accidents. A questionnaire survey was carried out in 11 areas of Japan. Questionnaires including questions regarding the length of time since houses had been built, types of facilities, and subjects' indoor thermal sensations and behavior while bathing were distributed to detached houses in each area twice, once in summer and once in winter.

Influence of long-term exposure to an air-conditioned environment on the diurnal cortisol rhythm.

In the present study, the influence of the long-term use of air-conditioning in summer on the cortisol rhythm was examined by measuring the rhythm in subjects who had been exposed to air-conditioning for a short [S] or long [L] time. Investigations were conducted twice in July and September. Atmospheric temperature and relative humidity near the subjects were measured for three days in each season.

Physiological and subjective responses in the elderly when using floor heating and air conditioning systems.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a floor heating and air conditioning system on thermal responses of the elderly. Eight elderly men and eight university students sat for 90 minutes in a chair under the following 3 conditions: air conditioning system (A), floor heating system (F) and no heating system (C). The air temperature of sitting head height for condition A was 25 degrees C, and the maximum difference in vertical air temperature was 4 degrees C.