One way to decrease heat loss is to supply the capillaries in the skin with a smaller volume of blood, minimising the loss of heat to the environment via radiation. During vasoconstriction, the muscles in the arteriole walls contract, causing the arterioles near the skin to constrict (get smaller) and allowing less blood to flow through capillaries, A standardized cold-air test was used before and after acclimation to determine physiological changes. Their data show that lowering skin temperature alone (exercise group) caused an insulative or enhanced vasoconstrictor response, but to effect a change in sympathetic nervous activity, both core and skin temperatures (resting group)., When exposed to cold winter air, the skin responds by constricting the arterioles, which reduces blood flow to minimize heat loss. This physiological mechanism helps maintain the body's core temperature. When temperatures drop, the small blood vessels in the skin, called arterioles, constrict or narrow. This action reduces the amount of , On exposure to cold several changes occur in the skin, the blood vessels constrict to prevent heat loss, shivering increases heat production, and contraction of the arrec-tor pilorum muscles of the skin lifts the hair follicles to trap a layer of air between the skin surface and the environment, thus increasing the insulating barrier between, Explain how the arterioles in the dermis respond to cold or warm external temperatures and to stress situations. In stress situations, the arterioles may constrict, prioritizing the body's response to stress over temperature regulation. Step by step solution. 01 Understand the dermis and arterioles. The dermis is the middle layer of the , The body initiates vasoconstriction when cold through signals sent from cold receptors in the skin to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus then activates the sympathetic nervous system, releasing neurotransmitters and hormones like adrenaline, which cause blood vessels to constrict, redirecting blood flow to essential organs..