SynthesisSports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.)2023
Heat Adaptation for Females: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Physiological Adaptations and Exercise Performance in the Heat.
Synthesis in Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 15 citations in OpenAlex.
- Influence of Exercise Heat Acclimation Protocol Characteristics on Adaptation Kinetics: A Quantitative Review With Bayesian Meta-Regressions.Comprehensive physiology · 2025Pooled it
- Repeated Sprint Training in Heat Improves Repeated Sprint Ability Under Temperate Conditions Similarly in Active Males and Females.European journal of sport science · 2026Article
- Heat intolerance: the challenge of returning to duty post-exertional heatstroke.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Review
- Climate Change and Adolescent Girls' Sports: A Scoping Review and Framework-Based Exploration of Emerging Barriers and Recommendations.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Three weeks of heat maintenance potentiates the benefits of heat acclimation in trained females.Physiological reports · 2025Article
- Mitochondrial adaptations from heat acclimation - A narrative review.Journal of thermal biology · 2025Review
- The effect of post-exercise heat exposure (passive heat acclimation) on endurance exercise performance: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Mapping the evidence on the impact of heat stress on exercise and work performance in females: a scoping review.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Review
- Exercise-induced dehydration does not impair cognitive performance in naturally menstruating women.Temperature (Austin, Tex.) · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHeat adaptation regimes are used to prepare athletes for exercise in hot conditions to limit a decrement in exercise performance. However, the heat adaptation literature mostly focuses on males, and consequently, current heat adaptation guidelines may not be optimal for females when accounting for the biological and phenotypical differences between sexes.
objectivesWe aimed to examine: (1) the effects of heat adaptation on physiological adaptations in females; (2) the impact of heat adaptation on performance test outcomes in the heat; and (3) the impact of various moderators, including duration (minutes and/or days), total heat dose (°C
methodsSPORTDiscus, MEDLINE Complete and Embase databases were searched to December 2022. Random-effects meta-analyses for resting and exercise core temperature, skin temperature, heart rate, sweat rate, plasma volume and performance tests in the heat were completed using Stata Statistical Software: Release 17. Sub-group meta-analyses were performed to explore the effect of duration, total heat dose, exercise intensity, total energy expended, frequency of heat exposure and training status on resting and exercise core temperature, skin temperature, heart rate and sweat rate. An explorative meta-regression was conducted to determine the effects of physiological adaptations on performance test outcomes in the heat following heat adaptation.
resultsThirty studies were included in the systematic review; 22 studies were meta-analysed. After heat adaptation, a reduction in resting core temperature (effect size [ES] = - 0.45; 95% confidence interval [CI] - 0.69, - 0.22; p < 0.001), exercise core temperature (ES = - 0.81; 95% CI - 1.01, - 0.60; p < 0.001), skin temperature (ES = - 0.64; 95% CI - 0.79, - 0.48; p < 0.001), heart rate (ES = - 0.60; 95% CI - 0.74, - 0.45; p < 0.001) and an increase in sweat rate (ES = 0.53; 95% CI 0.21, 0.85; p = 0.001) were identified in females. There was no change in plasma volume (ES = - 0.03; 95% CI - 0.31, 0.25; p = 0.835), whilst performance test outcomes were improved following heat adaptation (ES = 1.00; 95% CI 0.56, 1.45; p < 0.001). Across all moderators, physiological adaptations were more consistently observed following durations of 451-900 min and/or 8-14 days, exercise intensity ≥ 3.5 kcal
conclusionsHeat adaptation regimes induce physiological adaptations beneficial to thermoregulation and performance test outcomes in the heat in females. Sport coaches and applied sport practitioners can utilise the framework developed in this review to design and implement heat adaptation strategies for females.
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