The conventional wisdom has always been that the "normal" temperature of the healthy human body is 98.6°F (37.0°C). In reality, this was never "normal", merely an average, which came to be used as a benchmark or target by doctors around he world. What is actually "normal", of course, varies between individuals and situations.
But 98.6°F (37.0°C) is not even the average any more. A study analyzing 200 years of data has shown that the average body temperate has been falling by about 0.09°F (0.05°C) each decade since the 19th century, an effect that researchers pin on improved living conditions, better public health, and advancements on healthcare which have reduced chronic infections and long-term health issues.
"Normal" body temperature now ranges between 97.3°F and 98.2°F (36.2°C and 36.8°C), with an average of 97.9°F (36.6°C). Not a huge difference, you might say, but the (ongoing) decline in body temperature does have implications for diagnosing conditions and symptoms like fever.
Of course, we should also take into account the fact that body temperature naturally fluctuates throughout the day, and that it is influenced by factors such as age, sex, weight and height. For example, older adults tend to have a lower body temperature (due to reduced muscle mass and slower metabolism), women tend to have higher body temperatures (due to hormonal changes like the menstrual cycle), etc.
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