Some time ago I lived in the Sultanate of Oman. We travelled back to the UK overland, in mid-summer, camping near the road each night on our way through the deserts of Saudi Arabia. Though the temperature was higher in the interior of the Arabian Peninsular, it felt much cooler than our house by the coast because the air was so much drier.
The amount of humidity in your clothing system has the same effect. Better breath ability causes less heat stress. This table indicates the effects of temperature and humidity.
Water conducts heat about 24 times more than dry air. As air gets damper its insulation decreases. This has an impact when you stop sweating and try to stay warm (when you rest after a hard slog), as moisture trapped within your clothing system reduces its warmth. (Table of thermal conductance.) So better breathability also allows you to stay warmer.
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