Heat Acclimation Decay and Re-Induction: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Sports Medicine

Volumn 48, Issue 2, 2018, Pages 409-430

  Daanen, Hein A M ^a   Racinais, Sebastien ^b   Périard, Julien D ^b,c  

^a VU UNIVERSITY AMSTERDAM   (Netherlands)

^b ASPETAR ORTHOPAEDIC AND SPORTS MEDICINE HOSPITAL   (Qatar)

^c UNIVERSITY OF CANBERRA   (Australia)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ACCLIMATIZATION; CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY; EXERCISE; HEART RATE; HEAT; HEAT INJURY; HUMAN; MALE; META ANALYSIS; OXYGEN CONSUMPTION; PATHOPHYSIOLOGY; PHYSIOLOGY; THERMOREGULATION;

ACCLIMATIZATION; BODY TEMPERATURE REGULATION; CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDIES; EXERCISE; HEART RATE; HEAT STRESS DISORDERS; HOT TEMPERATURE; HUMANS; MALE; OXYGEN CONSUMPTION; PHYSICAL EXERTION;

EID: 85033438627     PISSN: 01121642     EISSN: 11792035     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1007/s40279-017-0808-x     Document Type: Review

References (119)

1. Périard JD, Cramer MN, Chapman PG, et al. Cardiovascular strain impairs prolonged self-paced exercise in the heat. Exp Physiol. 2011;96(2):134–44.
2. Périard JD, Racinais S. Performance and pacing during cycle exercise in hyperthermic and hypoxic conditions. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2016;48(5):845–53.
3. Brück K, Zeisberger E. Adaptive changes in thermoregulation and their neuropharmacological basis. Pharmacol Ther. 1987;35(1–1):163–215.
4. Sawka MN, Leon LR, Montain SJ, et al. Integrated physiological mechanisms of exercise performance, adaptation, and maladaptation to heat stress. Compr Physiol. 2011;1(4):1883–928.
5. Racinais S, Périard JD, Karlsen A, et al. Effect of heat and heat-acclimatization on cycling time-trial performance and pacing. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2015;47(3):601–6.
6. Sawka MN, Young AJ, Cadarette BS, et al. Influence of heat stress and acclimation on maximal aerobic power. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1985;53(4):294–8.
7. Lorenzo S, Halliwill JR, Sawka MN, et al. Heat acclimation improves exercise performance. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2010;109(4):1140–7.
8. Folk GE. Textbook of environmental physiology. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger; 1974.
9. Gonzalez RR, Gagge AP. Warm discomfort and associated thermoregulatory changes during dry, and humid-heat acclimatization. Isr J Med Sci. 1976;12(8):804–7.
10. Lemaire R. Considérations physiologiques sur la climatisation en milieu désertique. In: Journées d’information médico-sociales sahariennes: Maison de l’U.N.E.S.C.O., 9, 10, 11 avril 1959. Paris: Phuza A.M.G.; 1960. pp 101–12.
11. Horowitz M. Heat acclimation, epigenetics, and cytoprotection memory. Compr Physiol. 2014;4(1):199–230.
12. Périard JD, Racinais S, Sawka MN. Adaptations and mechanisms of human heat acclimation: applications for competitive athletes and sports. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25(S1):20–38.
13. Taylor NAS. Human heat adaptation. Compr Physiol. 2014;4(1):325–65.
14. Tyler CJ, Reeve T, Hodges GJ, et al. The effects of heat adaptation on physiology, perception and exercise performance in the heat: a meta-analysis. Sports Med. 2016;46(6):1699–724.
15. Périard JD, Travers GJS, Racinais S, et al. Cardiovascular adaptations supporting human exercise-heat acclimation. Auton Neurosci. 2016;196:52–62.
16. Pandolf KB. Time course of heat acclimation and its decay. Int J Sports Med. 1998;19(Suppl 2):S157–60.
17. Shapiro Y, Moran D, Epstein Y. Acclimatization strategies—preparing for exercise in the heat. Int J Sports Med. 1998;19:S161–3.
18. Guy JH, Deakin GB, Edwards AM, et al. Adaptation to hot environmental conditions: an exploration of the performance basis, procedures and future directions to optimise opportunities for elite athletes. Sports Med. 2015;45(3):303–11.
19. Hellon RF, Jones RM, Macpherson RK, et al. Natural and artificial acclimatization to hot environments. J Physiol. 1956;132(3):559–76.
20. IUPS_Thermal_Commission. Glossary of terms for thermal physiology. Jpn J Physiol. 2001;51(2):246–80.
21. Bergeron MF, Bahr R, Bartsch P, et al. International Olympic Committee consensus statement on thermoregulatory and altitude challenges for high-level athletes. Br J Sports Med. 2012;46(11):770–9.
22. Racinais S, Alonso JM, Coutts AJ, et al. Consensus recommendations on training and competing in the heat. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25(Suppl 1):6–19.
23. Gill N, Sleivert G. Effect of daily versus intermittent exposure on heat acclimation. Aviat Space Env Med. 2001;72(4):385–90.
24. 2 peak within a narrow range. J Appl Physiol. 2015;118:1258–65.
25. Taylor NAS, Cotter JD. Heat adaptation: guidelines for the optimisation of human performance. Int Sport Med J. 2006;7(1):33–57.
26. Mujika I. The influence of training characteristics and tapering on the adaptation in highly trained individuals: a review. Int J Sports Med. 1998;19(7):439–46.
27. Nadel ER, Pandolf KB, Roberts MF, et al. Mechanisms of thermal acclimation to exercise and heat. J Appl Physiol. 1974;37(4):515–20.
28. Nielsen B, Hales JR, Strange S, et al. Human circulatory and thermoregulatory adaptations with heat acclimation and exercise in a hot, dry environment. J Physiol. 1993;460:467–85.
29. Nielsen B, Strange S, Christensen NJ, et al. Acute and adaptive responses in humans to exercise in a warm, humid environment. Pflugers Arch. 1997;434(1):49–56.
30. Robinson S, Turrell ES, Belding HS, et al. Rapid acclimatization to work in hot climates. Am J Physiol. 1943;140:168–76.
31. Armstrong LE, Hubbard RW, DeLuca JP, Christensen EL. Self-paced heat acclimation procedures. Report no. T8/86. Natick: U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine; 1986.
32. Nelms JD, Turk J. A self-regulating method for rapid acclimatization to heat. J Physiol. 1972;221(1):2P–3P.
33. Fox RH, Goldsmith R, Hampton IF, et al. Heat acclimatization by controlled hyperthermia in hot-dry and hot-wet climates. J Appl Physiol. 1967;22(1):39–46.
34. Garrett AT, Goosens NG, Rehrer NG, et al. Induction and decay of short-term heat acclimation. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2009;107(6):659–70.
35. Patterson MJ, Stocks JM, Taylor NA. Sustained and generalized extracellular fluid expansion following heat acclimation. J Physiol. 2004;559(Pt 1):327–34.
36. Regan JM, Macfarlane DJ, Taylor NA. An evaluation of the role of skin temperature during heat adaptation. Acta Physiol Scand. 1996;158(4):365–75.
37. Ely MR, Kenefick RW, Cheuvront SN, et al. The effect of heat acclimation on sweat microminerals: artifact of surface contamination. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2013;23:470–9.
38. Horvath SM, Shelley WB. Acclimatization to extreme heat and its effect on the ability to work in less severe environments. Am J Physiol. 1946;146:336–43.
39. Lind AR, Bass DE. Optimal exposure time for development of acclimatization to heat. Fed Proc. 1963;22:704–8.
40. Strydom NB, Williams CG. Effect of physical conditioning on state of heat acclimatization of Bantu laborers. J Appl Physiol. 1969;27(2):262–5.
41. Wyndham CH, Benade AJ, Williams CG, et al. Changes in central circulation and body fluid spaces during acclimatization to heat. J Appl Physiol. 1968;25(5):586–93.
42. Poirier MP, Gagnon D, Friesen BJ, et al. Whole-body heat exchange during heat acclimation and its decay. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2015;47(2):390–400.
43. Taylor NAS. Principles and practices of heat adaptation. J Hum Environ Syst. 2000;4(1):11–22.
44. Karlsen A, Nybo L, Nørgaard SJ, et al. Time course of natural heat acclimatization in well-trained cyclists during a 2-week training camp in the heat. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25:240–9.
45. Buchheit M, Racinais S, Bilsborough J, et al. Adding heat to the live-high train-low altitude model: a practical insight from professional football. Br J Sports Med. 2013;47(Suppl 1):i59–69.
46. Buchheit M, Voss SC, Nybo L, et al. Physiological and performance adaptations to an in-season soccer camp in the heat: associations with heart rate and heart rate variability. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011;21(6):e477–85.
47. Racinais S, Buchheit M, Bilsborough J, et al. Physiological and performance responses to a training-camp in the heat in professional Australian football players. Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2014;9(4):598–603.
48. Racinais S, Mohr M, Buchheit M, et al. Individual responses to short-term heat acclimatisation as predictors of football performance in a hot, dry environment. Br J Sports Med. 2012;46(11):810–5.
49. Sunderland C, Morris JG, Nevill ME. A heat acclimation protocol for team sports. Br J Sports Med. 2008;42(5):327–33.
50. Fox RH, Goldsmith R, Hampton IF, et al. The nature of the increase in sweating capacity produced by heat acclimatization. J Physiol. 1964;171:368–76.
51. Fox RH, Goldsmith R, Kidd DJ, et al. Acclimatization to heat in man by controlled elevation of body temperature. J Physiol. 1963;166(3):530–47.
52. Garrett AT, Rehrer NJ, Patterson MJ. Induction and decay of short-term heat acclimation in moderately and highly trained athletes. Sports Med. 2011;41(9):757–71.
53. Beaudin AE, Clegg ME, Walsh ML, et al. Adaptation of exercise ventilation during an actively-induced hyperthermia following passive heat acclimation. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2009;297(3):R605–14.
54. Brazaitis M, Skurvydas A. Heat acclimation does not reduce the impact of hyperthermia on central fatigue. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2010;109(4):771–8.
55. Racinais S, Wilson MG, Periard JD. Passive heat acclimation improves skeletal muscle contractility in humans. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2017;312(1):R101–7.
56. Takamata A, Yoshida T, Nishida N, et al. Relationship of osmotic inhibition in thermoregulatory responses and sweat sodium concentration in humans. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2001;280(3):R623–9.
57. Moran D, Shapiro Y, Meiri U, et al. Exercise in the heat: individual impacts of heat acclimation and exercise training on cardiovascular performance. J Therm Biol. 1996;21:171–81.
58. Adolph EF. General and specific characteristics of physiological adaptations. Am J Physiol. 1956;184:18–28.
59. Gibson OR, Mee JA, Taylor L, et al. Isothermic and fixed-intensity heat acclimation methods elicit equal increases in Hsp72 mRNA. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25:259–68.
60. Gibson OR, Mee JA, Tuttle JA, et al. Isothermic and fixed intensity heat acclimation methods induce similar heat adaptation following short and long-term timescales. J Therm Biol. 2015;49-50:55–65.
61. Garrett AT, Creasy R, Rehrer NJ, et al. Effectiveness of short-term heat acclimation for highly trained athletes. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2012;112(5):1827–37.
62. Garrett AT, Goosens NG, Rehrer NJ, et al. Short-term heat acclimation is effective and may be enhanced rather than impaired by dehydration. Am J Hum Biol. 2014;26(3):311–20.
63. Neal RA, Corbett J, Massey HC, et al. Effect of short-term heat acclimation with permissive dehydration on thermoregulation and temperate exercise performance. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;26(8):875–84.
64. Scoon GS, Hopkins WG, Mayhew S, et al. Effect of post-exercise sauna bathing on the endurance performance of competitive male runners. J Sci Med Sport. 2007;10(4):259–62.
65. Stanley J, Halliday A, D’Auria S, et al. Effect of sauna-based heat acclimation on plasma volume and heart rate variability. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2015;115(4):785–94.
66. Zurawlew MJ, Walsh NP, Fortes MB, et al. Post-exercise hot water immersion induces heat acclimation and improves endurance exercise performance in the heat. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2016;26:745–54.
67. Casadio JR, Kilding AE, Cotter JD, et al. From lab to real world: heat acclimation considerations for elite athletes. Sports Med. 2016;47(8):1467–76.
68. Philp CP, Buchheit M, Kitic CM, et al. Does short-duration heat exposure at a matched cardiovascular intensity improve intermittent running performance in a cool environment? Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2016;5:1–23.
69. Chalmers S, Esterman A, Eston R, et al. Short-term heat acclimation training improves physical performance: a systematic review, and exploration of physiological adaptations and application for team sports. Sports Med. 2014;10(44):971–88.
70. Sawka MN, Wenger CB, Pandolf KB. Thermoregulatory responses to acute exercise-heat stress and heat acclimation. In: Fregly MJ, Blatteis CM, editors. Handbook of physiology. Section 4: environmental physiology. New York: Oxford University Press; 1996. p. 157–85.
71. Willmott AGB, Gibson OR, Hayes M, et al. The effects of single versus twice daily short term heat acclimation on heat strain and 3000 m running performance in hot, humid conditions. J Therm Biol. 2016;56:59–67.
72. Cheuvront SN, Chinevere TD, Ely BR, et al. Serum S-100beta response to exercise-heat strain before and after acclimation. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2008;40(8):1477–82.
73. Fein JT, Haymes EM, Buskirk ER. Effects of daily and intermittent exposures on heat acclimation of women. Int J Biometeorol. 1975;19(1):41–52.
74. Kraemer WJ, Armstrong LE, Hubbard RW, et al. Responses of plasma human atrial natriuretic factor to high intensity submaximal exercise in the heat. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1988;57(4):399–403.
75. Weller AS, Linnane DM, Jonkman AG, et al. Quantification of the decay and re-induction of heat acclimation in dry-heat following 12 and 26 days without exposure to heat stress. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2007;102(1):57–66.
76. Barnett A, Maughan RJ. Response of unacclimatized males to repeated weekly bouts of exercise in the heat. Br J Sports Med. 1993;27(1):39–44.
77. Houmard JA, Dl Costill, Davis JA, et al. The influence of exercise intensity on heat acclimation in trained subjects. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1990;22(5):615–20.
78. Bean WB, Eichna LW. Performance in relation to environmental temperature: reactions of normal young men to simulated desert environment. Fed Proc. 1943;2:144–58.
79. Eichna LW, Bean WB, Ashe WF, et al. Performance in relation to environmental temperature: reactions of normal young men to hot, humid (simulated jungle) environment. Bull Johns Hopkins Hosp. 1945;76:25–58.
80. Griefahn B. Acclimation to three different hot climates with equivalent wet bulb globe temperatures. Ergonomics. 1997;40(2):223–34.
81. Candas V. Adaptation to extreme environments. Thermophysiological changes in man during humid heat acclimation. In: Dejours P, editor. Comparative physiology of environmental adaptations. Basel: Karger; 1987. p. 76–93.
82. Patterson MJ, Stocks JM, Taylor NAS. Humid heat acclimation does not elicit a preferential sweat redistribution toward the limbs. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2004;286:R512–8.
83. Sawka MN, Toner MM, Francesconi RP, et al. Hypohydration and exercise: effects of heat acclimation, gender, and environment. J Appl Physiol. 1983;55:1147–53.
84. Cheung SS, McLellan TM. Heat acclimation, aerobic fitness, and hydration effects on tolerance during uncompensable heat stress. J Appl Physiol (1985). 1998;84(5):1731–9.
85. Gardner JW, Kark JA, Karnei K, et al. Risk factors predicting exertional heat illness in male Marine Corps recruits. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1996;28(8):939–44.
86. Shvartz E, Shapiro Y, Magazanik A, et al. Heat acclimation, physical fitness, and responses to exercise in temperate and hot environments. J Appl Physiol Respir Environ Exerc Physiol. 1977;43(4):678–83.
87. Best S, Thompson M, Caillaud C, et al. Exercise-heat acclimation in young and older trained cyclists. J Sci Med Sport. 2013;17(6):677–82.
88. Wagner JA, Robinson S, Tzankoff SP, et al. Heat tolerance and acclimatization to work in the heat in relation to age. J Appl Physiol. 1972;33(5):616–22.
89. Horstman DH, Christensen E. Acclimatization to dry heat: active men vs. active women. J Appl Physiol Respir Environ Exerc Physiol. 1982;52(4):825–31.
90. Mee JA, Gibson OR, Doust J, et al. A comparison of males and females’ temporal patterning to short- and long-term heat acclimation. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25:250–8.
91. Pandolf KB, Burse RL, Goldman RF. Role of physical fitness in heat acclimatisation, decay and reinduction. Ergonomics. 1977;20(4):399–408.
92. Williams CG, Wyndham CH, Morrison JF. Rate of loss of acclimatization in summer and winter. J Appl Physiol. 1967;22(1):21–6.
93. Daanen HAM, Jonkman AG, Layden JD, et al. Optimising the acquisition and retention of heat acclimation. Int J Sports Med. 2011;32(11):822–8.
94. Rowell LB, Kranning KK, Kennedy JW, et al. Central circulatory responses to work in dry heat before and after acclimatization. J Appl Physiol. 1967;22(3):509–18.
95. Senay LC. An inquiry into the role of cardiac filling pressure in acclimatization to heat. Yale J Biol Med. 1986;59:247–56.
96. Armstrong LE, Maresh CM. The induction and decay of heat acclimatisation in trained athletes. Sports Med. 1991;12(5):302–12.
97. Stein HJ, Eliot JW, Bader RA. Physiological reactions to cold and their effects on the retention of acclimatization to heat. J Appl Physiol. 1949;1:575–85.
98. Henschel A, Taylor HL, Keys A. The persistence of heat acclimatization in man. Am J Physiol. 1943;140:321–5.
99. Adam JM, Fox RH, Grimby G, et al. Acclimatization to heat and its rate of decay in man. J Physiol. 1960;152:26–7.
100. Wyndham CH, Jacobs GE. Loss of acclimatization after six days of work in cool conditions on the surface of a mine. J Appl Physiol. 1957;11:197–8.
101. Saat M, Sirisinghe RG, Singh R, et al. Decay of heat acclimation during exercise in cold and exposure to cold environment. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2005;95(4):313–20.
102. Ashley CD, Ferron J, Bernard TE. Loss of heat acclimation and time to re-establish acclimation. J Occup Environ Hyg. 2015;12(5):302–8.
103. Flouris AD, Poirier MP, Bravi A, et al. Changes in heart rate variability during the induction and decay of heat acclimation. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2014;114(10):2119–28.
104. Dell Inc. Statistica [data analysis software system]. version 13 (software.dell.com). Round Rock: Dell Inc.; 2016.
105. Neal RA, Massey HC, Tipton MJ, et al. Effect of permissive dehydration on induction and decay of heat acclimation, and temperate exercise performance. Front Physiol. 2016;7:564.
106. Lovell R, Madden L, Carroll S, et al. The time-profile of the PBMC HSP70 response to in vitro heat shock appears temperature-dependent. Amino Acids. 2007;33(1):137–44.
107. Lee JB, Bae JS, Lee MY, et al. The change in peripheral sweating mechanisms of the tropical Malaysian who stays in Japan. J Therm Biol. 2004;29(7-8 Spec. Iss.):743–7.
108. Lee JY, Bakri I, Toramoto S, et al. Cutaneous thermal thresholds of tropical indigenes residing in Japan. J Therm Biol. 2011;36(7):461–8.
109. Wijayanto T, Toramoto S, Wakabayashi H, et al. Effects of duration of stay in temperate area on thermoregulatory responses to passive heat exposure in tropical south-east Asian males residing in Japan. J Physiol Anthropol. 2012;31:25.
110. Stephens RL, Hoag LL. Heat acclimatization, its decay and reinduction in young Caucasian females. Am Ind Hyg Ass J. 1981;42(1):12–7.
111. Pichan G, Sridharan K, Swamy YV, et al. Physiological acclimatization to heat after a spell of cold conditioning in tropical subjects. Aviat Space Environ Med. 1985;56(5):436–40.
112. Stocks JM, Patterson MJ, Hyde DE, et al. Metabolic habituation following repeated resting cold-water immersion is not apparent during low-intensity cold-water exercise. J Physiol Anthropol Appl Hum Sci. 2001;20(5):263–7.
113. Taylor NA, Tipton MJ, Kenny GP. Considerations for the measurement of core, skin and mean body temperatures. J Therm Biol. 2014;46:72–101.
114. Johnson RH, Corbett JL, Wilkinson RH. Desert journeys by Bedouin: sweating and concentration of urine during travel by camel and on foot. Nature. 1968;219(5157):953–4.
115. Givoni B, Goldman RF. Predicting effects of heat acclimatization on heart rate and rectal temperature. J Appl Physiol. 1973;35(6):875–9.
116. Tetievsky A, Cohen O, Eli-Berchoer L, et al. Physiological and molecular evidence of heat acclimation memory: a lesson from thermal responses and ischemic cross-tolerance in the heart. Physiol Genom. 2008;34(1):78–87.
117. Casadio JR, Kilding AE, Siegel R, et al. Periodizing heat acclimation in elite Laser sailors preparing for a world championship event in hot conditions. Temperature. 2016;3:437–43.
118. Pryor JK, Pryor R, Casa D, et al. Effectiveness of an intermittent exercise-heat exposure protocol to sustain heat acclimation adaptations. Br J Sports Med. 2017;51:375.
119. Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, et al. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: the PRISMA statement. PLoS Med. 2009;6(7):e1000097.