<P> Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries , even when the surrounding temperature is very different . A thermoconforming organism , by contrast , simply adopts the surrounding temperature as its own body temperature , thus avoiding the need for internal thermoregulation . The internal thermoreegulation process is one aspect of homeostasis : a state of dynamic stability in an organism 's internal conditions , maintained far from thermal equilibrium with its environment ( the study of such processes in zoology has been called physiological ecology ) . If the body is unable to maintain a normal temperature and it increases significantly above normal , a condition known as hyperthermia occurs . For humans , this occurs when the body is exposed to constant temperatures of approximately 55 ° C ( 131 ° F ) , and with prolonged exposure ( longer than a few hours ) at this temperature and up to around 75 ° C ( 167 ° F ) death is almost inevitable . Humans may also experience lethal hyperthermia when the wet bulb temperature is sustained above 35 ° C ( 95 ° F ) for six hours . The opposite condition , when body temperature decreases below normal levels , is known as hypothermia . It results when the homeostatic control mechanisms of heat within the body malfunction , causing the body to lose heat faster than producing it . Normal body temperature is around 37 ° C ( 99 ° F ) , and hypothermia sets in when the core body temperature gets lower than 35 ° C ( 95 ° F ) . Usually caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures , hypothermia is usually treated by methods that attempt to raise the body temperature back to a normal range . </P>
<P> Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries , even when the surrounding temperature is very different . A thermoconforming organism , by contrast , simply adopts the surrounding temperature as its own body temperature , thus avoiding the need for internal thermoregulation . The internal thermoreegulation process is one aspect of homeostasis : a state of dynamic stability in an organism 's internal conditions , maintained far from thermal equilibrium with its environment ( the study of such processes in zoology has been called physiological ecology ) . If the body is unable to maintain a normal temperature and it increases significantly above normal , a condition known as hyperthermia occurs . For humans , this occurs when the body is exposed to constant temperatures of approximately 55 ° C ( 131 ° F ) , and with prolonged exposure ( longer than a few hours ) at this temperature and up to around 75 ° C ( 167 ° F ) death is almost inevitable . Humans may also experience lethal hyperthermia when the wet bulb temperature is sustained above 35 ° C ( 95 ° F ) for six hours . The opposite condition , when body temperature decreases below normal levels , is known as hypothermia . It results when the homeostatic control mechanisms of heat within the body malfunction , causing the body to lose heat faster than producing it . Normal body temperature is around 37 ° C ( 99 ° F ) , and hypothermia sets in when the core body temperature gets lower than 35 ° C ( 95 ° F ) . Usually caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures , hypothermia is usually treated by methods that attempt to raise the body temperature back to a normal range . </P>
hypothermia is a state of body temperature lower than
hypothermia is a state of body temperature lower than
35 ° C ( 95 ° F )
35 ° C ( 95 ° F )