A bizarre TikTok trend called ‘Wife vs husband shower temperature’ has racked up countless videos and views as men claim their wives’ steamy showers are just too hot to handle – and it’s a phenomenon backed by science
Ever baffled by the temperature of your partner’s shower?
If you are, you’re definitely not alone. ‘Wife vs husband shower temperature’ is a bizarre trend that’s racked up countless videos on TikTok as men claim their wives’ steamy showers are just too hot to handle.
Podcaster Micah is among them, taking to the internet to voice frustration about his wife, Sarah, who seems to love ‘boiling’ water. “This is why my wife and I can’t shower together…this is boiling hot – hottest it can go,” Micah said on the couple’s TikTok, @micahandsarah, before zooming in on his shower control settings.
Reducing the temperature only slightly, he continued: “Thirty degree burns, this is where she’s comfortable… Her temperature, boiling a turkey.”
Turns out, there’s actually a scientific explanation behind these stark differences, according to Dr Sermed Mezher. The London-based medic explained women are far more likely to experience cold sensitivity and this can fluctuate throughout the menstrual cycle.
“If you’re a woman who likes to crank up the shower heating bill, then you’re not alone and there’s a reason for it,” he said, taking to his Instagram page, @drsermedmezher. “See, women naturally have a fractionally higher core body temperature compared to men which helps to keep those inner organs toasty, but can lead to cold sensitivity than can worsen throughout the cycle.”
Dr Mezher explained that a woman’s temperature sensitivity peaks during ovulation and towards the end of menstruation. This is largely thanks to a rise in oestrogen which is proven to lower body temperature, while reducing blood flow to the hands and feet.
He also wrote: “Oestrogen, a key hormone in the female reproductive system, can have significant effects on blood properties and circulation. One of these effects includes thickening the blood, which can complicate its flow, particularly to small capillaries in extremities like the hands and feet.
“We also know that women are five times more likely to suffer from Raynaud’s phenomenon which can cause spasm of the blood vessels in the hands and feet. But even without this, women are on average three degrees colder in the hands and feet due to oestrogen thickening the blood, making it more difficult to get there.”
Aside from this, women usually have between six and 11% more body fat than men, who generally have more skeletal muscle. This muscle is known as a ‘thermogenic organ’ – meaning it produces heat.
As a result, men typically get the perk of feeling warmer. Dr Mezher’s explanation was quick to rack up a swathe of comments, with couples chipping in about their own relationship differences.
One person said: “My girl literally showers with lava, that some sort of superpower.” Another wrote: “I dated a guy once where our tolerable shower temperatures had no overlap. The temp he liked felt cold or barely lukewarm to me, and by the time I bumped it up to “barely tolerable” he felt like it was scalding.”
However, other women said this didn’t represent their experience, with one writing: “Me and my boyfriend are opposite to this, I prefer cold and him super hot.”
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