Hot Head

If I asked you what the average body temperature is, you’d probably say around 37°C. The brain’s temperature is generally assumed to be the same, despite its much higher workload. Much like components of your phone heat up when working harder, researchers have found that the same can be said for our brains, which run hotter than previously thought. Using a technique called magnetic resonance spectroscopy, the team measured brain temperatures of people throughout the day. Average temperatures for different regions are shown using coloured blocks where dark purples are coolest and yellows are highest. Brain temperatures varied throughout the day being warmer in the morning (left) and afternoon (middle), and cooler at night (right). Female brains (top row) were warmer than male brains (bottom row), and the team also found differences with age and the menstrual cycle. This has major implications for how we diagnose and manage several brain disorders.

Written by Sophie Arthur

Sophie Arthur

former Science Communications Officer MRC LMS

Formerly a stem cell biologist, Sophie has since moved into science communication working at the MRC LMS. She also writes an award winning science and education blog Soph talks science.

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• Image from work by Nina M Rzechorzek and colleagues
• MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology Cambridge, UK
• Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in Brain, June 2022