Valedictory lecture Prof. dr. Wouter D. van Marken Lichtenbelt

"The Heat Is On"

Nutrition and exercise are central to addressing our diseases of affluence, such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In my talk, I show that in addition, ambient temperature is an important lifestyle factor. Our research repeatedly shows that variation in temperature creates a healthier and more resilient body.  
In both cold and heat, the body has to “get to work” resulting in higher energy expenditure and better processing of our fats and sugars from food. In my lecture, I highlight the research findings of the past 10 years from our TherMU research group: discoveries about the role of brown fat and muscle when exposed to cold. Also discussed are the results of our 2020 field study of nomads in Siberia living in temperatures as low as -30°C. Finally, I discuss how passive heat habituation makes us metabolic healthier and increases our resilience during heat waves. 

Our results can be applied in the built environment. The focal point here is the creation of a healthy and sustainable indoor climate. This multidisciplinary approach has has been very fruitful. For example, we now better understand how people experience exposure to more variation in temperature in practice and how we can increase its acceptance. 
Eventually, the new insights will find their way into guidelines for a healthy energy-efficient indoor climate. 

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