BEING cold does not GIVE you a cold....

[IMissEd]

With that being said, I have read that people are more likely to succomb to the germs if their airway has been irritated by cold air.[/QUOTE]

Not to argue because I think we agree overall, but I'm curious ...even if this were true, wouldn't your airways be irritated by cold air whether you were wearing a coat/hat or not?

Good point!

 

[daughtersrus]

My MIL insisted that my DD needed tubes in her ears because she didn't wear a hat. She never would accept that DD's ears were not formed correctly because of the genetic disease that she has.

 

[mhsjax]

I am right there with you OP. I never understood why people think this. I have a friend that is my age, well a little younger, so early forties and she dresses her kids like nanook from the north as soon as it turns chilly.

It is funny, but DH and I get our worst colds in the spring.

 

[allyphoe]

Johnson, C, Eccles R. "Acute cooling of the feet and the onset of common cold symptoms." Fam Pract. 2005 Dec;22(6):608-13. Epub 2005 Nov 14 (http://fampra.oxfordjournals.org/content/22/6/608.long )

Conclusion. Acute chilling of the feet causes the onset of common cold symptoms in around 10% of subjects who are chilled.

Not everyone infected by a cold virus develops symptoms, and it's possibly that some people are susceptible to cold-induced symptoms. I personally am not one of them.

 

[Mom2Ashli]

My Mom is forever telling my DD she is going to get sick because she is not wearing socks, a jacket or shorts.

Both DH and I say you don't get sick from being cold you get sick from germs to ourselves. We have said it to her before but she still keeps saying it, so we just let her say it and just ignore it.

And we try to tell my Mom "just because you think it is cold, doesn't mean the rest of us feel the same way."

 

[DisMN]

My MIL is a true believer in the coat being a MUST on chilly days. She also believes in covering your feet AT ALL TIMES (which is understandable...her feet are HORRORS to look at. LOL)

She ALSO rides my butt if/when I go out with wet hair. Wet hair causes not just a cold but ALWAYS causes pneumonia.

With her lack of medical knowledge it's a wonder DH didn't grow up a hypochondriac.

Frighteningly the woman also believed in an enema for every ailment and swallowing a finger full of Vick's Vaporub when you had a cold. EATING a petrolium product! Holy crap on a cracker!

 

[PollyannaMom]

I think this:

...your immune system takes a bigger hit when you're not dressed appropriately for the weather. If your body is using up its resources trying to keep you warm, it makes sense to me that you might be more vulnerable to infection (but the viruses/bacteria have to be there in the first place!).

probably does make some difference,

but that it's mostly this:

We catch colds more often in the winter because we spend most of our time inside, in close quarters to other people, so our germs are more easily passed to each other...

and also (a tiny bit) the fact that so much is going on in the winter that we hesitate to miss. If you just feel tired (but are actually coming down with a cold and don't know it) you might skip a spur of the moment picnic in the summer, thereby not spreading your germs, but you're not likely to skip an important Christmas gathering, and you spread the germs before you even realize they're there.


This makes sense as a piece of the reason, too:

....in the winter time, we bundle up in many cloths and the sun makes few appearances in winter time also. So our D3 levels are lower in winter time, which might be why we see more flu bugs this time of year - not because we get a chill. ...

 

[Bilberry]

Oh, I'd guess the old saying comes from the flu season being during winter. Probably it came about by an observation that when it is cold, the flu bug makes an appearance. But as you mention, observations does not mean causation.

I'm a fan of the sunshine vitamin, and it's ability to prevent illnesses. There have been a number of articles about this of late. But in the winter time, we bundle up in many cloths and the sun makes few appearances in winter time also. So our D3 levels are lower in winter time, which might be why we see more flu bugs this time of year - not because we get a chill.

What I do is supplement to keep my D3 levels up, between 60 to 70ng/ml year round. As a result I do not come down with the sniffles as I used to. The winter blues have gone away too. And I also feel warmer.

Somethings I've read about this:

Unique vitamin D observations

http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/unique-vitamin-d-observations.html

&

Higher vitamin D level linked with reduced risk of infection

http://www.drbriffa.com/2010/06/28/higher-vitamin-d-level-linked-with-reduced-risk-of-infection/

 

[JessicaR]

Or does it? Either I'm a rare medical genius or I'm mistaken. Because lately it seems that I'm the only person who understands how disease works. I swear, every time someone catches me venturing outdoors in the cold without a coat, I'm warned that I'm going to "catch a cold," "catch my death," "catch pneuomonia," etc. NO I'm not. I may catch hypothermia or frostbite, but probably not. At worst I'll just be a little cold for a while. But how exactly do people think that cold air conducts viruses?

Just venting, I guess. How many generations need to pass before old wives tales fade out?

Being cold does not give you a cold - unless you are from the old school way of thinking. Sorry.

When I was in high school I walked out that door every morning with a wet head. Waited at a freezing bus stop - was hardly ever sick but I sure was COLD and not too bright either.

Blame the kids for all the flu/cold viruses that spread in the winter - they are in school sharing germs in close quarters and bring it home to us. Off in the summer and spending more time outdoors = less colds.

 

[bicker]

How many generations need to pass before old wives tales fade out?

When people actually start paying attention in Science class?

I believe that old wives' tales endure at least in part as a reflection of the fear some people have for venturing into the unknown. It is unnerving to some to come to understand that things we thought we knew were actually incorrect or inaccurate.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I have a student who is forever leaving her jacket at after school care. This student also happens to get a lot of colds. See where this is going? I always make sure this student has her jacket when she leaves school. I cannot control what happens afterwards. Yet at least once a week I am treated to a big long lecture about how I " don't understand ______ has special needs" and how shis sickly and must have her coat. And I go through it every time that I make sure she has her coat when she leaves me but I cna't control what happens outside of school. The nurse and I don't even try to correct the fallacy that cold weather = sick.

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

My mom told me the other day that the common cold leads to cancer. She is the queen of wives tales and insanity. My daughter had two ear infection and 4 colds in the first year of life. She told me I was a horrible mom for "letting" her get sick.

Things I STILL don't get. Girls wearing miniskirt with Uggs or Hunters!

 

[dizluvah]

Or does it? Either I'm a rare medical genius or I'm mistaken. Because lately it seems that I'm the only person who understands how disease works. I swear, every time someone catches me venturing outdoors in the cold without a coat, I'm warned that I'm going to "catch a cold," "catch my death," "catch pneuomonia," etc. NO I'm not. I may catch hypothermia or frostbite, but probably not. At worst I'll just be a little cold for a while. But how exactly do people think that cold air conducts viruses?

Just venting, I guess. How many generations need to pass before old wives tales fade out?

Temperature has nothing to do with it....my dh says that ALL the time...he corrects me every couple of days.....I know that logically he is right but I still worry that cold hands in my daughter means she's going to catch cold

 

[aprilgail2]

She ALSO rides my butt if/when I go out with wet hair. Wet hair causes not just a cold but ALWAYS causes pneumonia.
!

I go out with wet hair everyday--have for the past 30 years and has had no ill effect on me-- now ask my mom and she will tell you that I had H1N1 last year becuase I went out with wet hair and my coat unzipped LOL.

 

[golfgal]

My MIL insisted that my DD needed tubes in her ears because she didn't wear a hat. She never would accept that DD's ears were not formed correctly because of the genetic disease that she has.

There are a lot of people that will put cotton balls in kids' ears so they don't get ear infections too They think wind causes them. It's really hard not to laugh at them when they say things like this.

We heard the "wet hair" thing a lot around here too.

 

[torinsmom]

As a teacher, I have had parents tell me that their child got a cold b/c we took them out when it was below freezing. I have also had parents complain that their child had a fever b/c I took them out in 90 degree weather for 10 minutes. Yet another insisted that her son's milk be warmed at lunch because when he drinks something cold, he gets a cold. These were educated parents, mostly from India. After awhile I didn't even comment, as that seemed to offend them. Haven't heard it much from parents at the new school. There is one child in the next class who cannot go outside when its really cold. She has asthma and the cold air does set her off.

 

[LuvOrlando]

While it's true that you can't catch a cold from being cold, I do think that your immune system takes a bigger hit when you're not dressed appropriately for the weather. If your body is using up its resources trying to keep you warm, it makes sense to me that you might be more vulnerable to infection (but the viruses/bacteria have to be there in the first place!).

I keep having this same conversation with my kids. Your body will make keeping itself the appropriate mammal temperature it's #1 priority, so when you make your body work to keep itself warm (or cool) what it can't do is fight off that little touch of something floating around in your body because someone sneezed on you 2 days ago. We always have germs in our systems, always as in all the time with no breaks ever, but we only get sick when they overwhelm the systems defenses. Helping your body keep itself warm frees your system up to do more important things. Un-necessary stress is never a good thing.

Check out a Microbiology book, all I kept thinking was "EWWW" and "I'm impressed."

 

[golfgal]

As a teacher, I have had parents tell me that their child got a cold b/c we took them out when it was below freezing. I have also had parents complain that their child had a fever b/c I took them out in 90 degree weather for 10 minutes. Yet another insisted that her son's milk be warmed at lunch because when he drinks something cold, he gets a cold. These were educated parents, mostly from India. After awhile I didn't even comment, as that seemed to offend them. Haven't heard it much from parents at the new school. There is one child in the next class who cannot go outside when its really cold. She has asthma and the cold air does set her off.

Well, if that is the case, we would be sick from Dec-March up here. Most schools use -10 as their cut off for going outside for recess .

 

[Tinkermommy]

My kids have had a virus and high fevers on Sunday. Yesterday I bundled them up and they went out into the rare Atlanta snow a couple of times yesterday (no fever on Monday!).

They are both doing great this am.

My friend dropped out of nursing school and still thinks if her daughter is cold she can catch a cold.

 

[SpecialK]

While it's true that you can't catch a cold from being cold, I do think that your immune system takes a bigger hit when you're not dressed appropriately for the weather. If your body is using up its resources trying to keep you warm, it makes sense to me that you might be more vulnerable to infection (but the viruses/bacteria have to be there in the first place!).

Prolonged exposure to the cold when you're not properly dressed for it lowers your resistance to germs to which you have been exposed.