Parental Myths #6: Cold Weather Leads to Illness
Tuesday, February 21, 2006 at 8:27AM Parental Myth #6 : Cold Weather Leads to Illness
Once again, let's begin by looking at the method to their madness : In the winter there are more colds, so they assume that air temperature/conditions are the cause of colds and flu. And how do they begin their assault? with a typical parental statement, "You better put on a sweater, I don't want you to catch cold..."
Straight and simple, sickness is not caused by temperature fluctuation in your body.
You may ask yourself, how do I (a dentist) know this? Easy. Several years ago I was watching an old Geraldo episode. He allowed himself to be placed in a deep freezer for an extended period of time. His core body temperature dropped, he then exercised in the freezer (causing himself to sweat extensively) and then he cooled down in the freezer. He even slept in the freezer (in a sleeping bag) and then walked out to be observed for several days. Voila! No cold...no flu...no nuthin'. Any 1st year med student can tell you that viruses/bacteria cause infection.
Now...I will offer this side point for parents everywhere : rest and warmth (try saying this word without pronouncing a "p," which doesn't even exist in the spelling) will help you recover and I wouldn't recommend lawn mowing in the nude when you have a sore throat. But, in the absence of viral activity, a blustery day without an umbrella/jacket will not cause illness.
So, this winter join me in my underwear as I dance through puddles, roller skate in your bikini this January, or as you prepare to leave the house and you hear that little voice...ignore it and go sweater-less.
Click here to read the other parental myths exposed!
Quietly making noise,
Fletch
Reader Comments (3)
In response to your comment about the myth about being in the cold makes you sick. I believe with you that the cold alone doesn't make you sick. But doesn't being in the cold lower your metabolism, which also lowers your ability to fight off infection? Just wondering, i might be wrong, could you point me out?
Benjamin...sure, so does eating a lot of sugar, but my parents never warned me that eating a candy bar would lead to an illness...
Have a great day!
Well, of course. How silly. Obviously a kid must be exposed to a virus/bacteria to get sick. This is very timely reading for me.
Can you explain to me why one of my kids (age 5) gets sick almost every time he goes outside to play? Especially when the other kids (ages 7 and 2.5) don't. What is it about playing outside that makes him especially susceptible to the virus? As an example, all three of them were outside sledding for the better part of 2 hours. The 5-year-old is the only one who got sick, and it was more than just "oh I have a cough" kind of sick, it was a hard cough and he fell asleep while watching a movie (not a common thing for him.) It really knocked him out.
I haven't yet taken him to the dr on this one because I'm guessing I'll get the "overprotective mother" jazz, but really? I'm worried about him. Where do I start in trying to figure this out?