Scientists Finally Figured Out If Men Really Do Sweat More Than Women

Since the beginning of time, the general population has been in agreement that men sweat and women sparkle.

But all it takes is stepping foot into a hot yoga class to realize that's a lie.

Ladies, our secret is out, and science has officially proved that gender has nothing to do with how easily we sweat during exercise.

Size matters.

When you're body is getting hot and bothered, it can cool itself down in two different ways: increasing circulation or expelling water from sweat glands.

Whether your body chooses to sweat or not actually depends on how much surface area per kilogram of body mass you have.

So, smaller males and females with more skin circumference per kilogram of body mass will sweat less because they depend on increased circulation to rise to the surface in order to release heat.

People with more muscle and weight depend on sweat to cool them down.

How exactly did they measure this?

Scientists from the University of Wollongong in Australia and Mie Prefectural College of Nursing in Japan analyzed the sweating responses and skin blood flow in 24 women and 36 men after they performed controlled workouts.

With all participants doing the same exercise in the same heat conditions, they discovered the participants had the same body temperature changes, no matter their sex.

Many professionals have always thought gender had an impact on sweating and skin blood flow, but these researchers proved they're dependent on body size.

Lead researcher Sean Notely said,

Gender has long been thought to influence sweating and skin blood flow during heat stress. We found that these heat loss responses are, in fact, gender independent during exercise in conditions where the body can successfully regulate its temperature.

The common thought that men sweat more than women probably came about because healthy men tend to weigh more than healthy women of the same height, depending on their muscle and bone density.

So ladies, next time you're sweating to death at the gym, remember you sweat exactly how much your body needs to, regardless of gender.

Citations: Who sweats more: Men or women? (Science Daily)