Winter presents a dangerous season with rates increasing for cardiovascular and hypothermia-related deaths (The Eurowinter Group, 1997). Older adults have a greater risk of hypothermia given their diminished circulatory function (Kenney & Armstrong, 1996). This population are also more likely to be taking medications, such as paracetamol, for pain relief (McLachlan et al., 2011; Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2014). However, given that paracetamol ingestion reduces deep body temperature to a greater extent versus placebo in young healthy males (Foster et al., 2017), this medication may exacerbate the already heightened risk of hypothermia in older individuals. Therefore, the aim of this project is to investigate the effect of paracetamol on the defence of deep body temperature during cold air exposure in both young and older adults.
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Chief Investigators
