• Question: why does our faces go red after doing sports?

    Asked by fuller99 to Anouk, Chris, Judith, Leisha, Seyyed on 20 Jun 2012.
    • Photo: Chris Kettle

      Chris Kettle answered on 20 Jun 2012:

      To help us cool down. Its called vasodilation and means that blood is sent to the surface of the skin where it can cool down so we don’t overheat. Energy from doing sports results in our bodies heating up. Your capillaries open up to more blood and your turn red/pink until you cool down.

      Thats one reason we sweat too, the evaporation of the sweat cools us down too.

    • Photo: Judith Sleeman

      Judith Sleeman answered on 21 Jun 2012:

      Yes, it’s all to help you keep your cool! The capillaries near the surface of your skin open up and let more blood in so that the heat from the blood can escape into the air. It’s the blood that causes the redness. Although I always have the added redness from embarrassment as I’m rubbish at sport and always lose!

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