Your usual body temp

[teller80]

First, my thermometer must be 20 years old, and second, I don't usually take my temperature unless I'm sick.

Now that I'm taking it regularly, I noticed it's usually 97.5. Is this just a "duh" moment for me to realize that 98.5 is just an average for the population in general? If it's an average, then other people must have a normal temp of 99.5, right? Or do I need a new thermometer?

 

[Christine]

Well, you could get another thermometer just to check; however, 98.6 isn't really the "normal" these days. There's been several TV spots on the news about it. Just an average I guess. My temperature is routinely below 98.6. Other days I can be completely well and have it at 99.5. Just depends.

 

[rkstocke5609]

My wife’s norm is 96.8 but mine is 98.6

 

[apirateslifeforme]

Yep, my norm seems to be in the low 97 area. 97.2 comes up a lot. But my husband and 4.5-year-old son run hot - DH is usually 99-something, and DS is always in the high 99, even a few points over 100.

 

[tvguy]

At least here, you can't find thermometers in the store, all sold out

 

[choirfarm]

Yes, my kids and I run when we are normal. Either they are not calibrated correctly, or we just run low. That has been true for the 10 or more thermometers I've used over the last 25 years since I've had kids. We've had several types. When I am not feeling well, but not really sick my temp climbs to the "normal" temp of 98.5. If we run over 99, we are really sick.

 

[Brett Wyman]

My normal is high 97s as well. It drives my wife, who works in medicine, crazy when I say it but I feel feverish when I’m 98.7.

 

[macraven]

My norm is 97.5 and has been for years.

 

[mom2rtk]

You probably couldn’t find a new one right now if you wanted to. Mine keeps flashing a low battery message so I have been looking.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

First, my thermometer must be 20 years old, and second, I don't usually take my temperature unless I'm sick.

Now that I'm taking it regularly, I noticed it's usually 97.5. Is this just a "duh" moment for me to realize that 98.5 is just an average for the population in general? If it's an average, then other people must have a normal temp of 99.5, right? Or do I need a new thermometer?

I usually run about average. DH and DS both run about 96.8, without a cold.

I found a thermometer at Target; if you hop onto there pick up today option, you can keep an eye on stock. That's how I found our new one.

If worst comes to worst, see if you can find a basal thermometer. LOL

 

[mombrontrent]

You probably couldn’t find a new one right now if you wanted to. Mine keeps flashing a low battery message so I have been looking.

I thought of this the other day actually because we don’t have a thermometer at all, I used to have one of those digital ear ones that I got when my son was a baby (he was born in 1999) but I got rid of last time we moved six years ago and didn’t bother to replace it. Never had a need for one so I didn’t think of it until now.

I obviously don’t know anyone’s average temperature as I don’t have a thermometer. I only ever used it if they were sick as an infant.

 

[lynxstch]

You probably couldn’t find a new one right now if you wanted to. Mine keeps flashing a low battery message so I have been looking.

Can't you just put a new battery in yours?

We have 2 of them, so don't need one at the moment. But when you said that I went to look on Amazon to see what was up with thermometers (no pun intended). So much for them cracking down on price gouging.! One of the exact ones we bought about 5 months ago, for $25, is being sold for almost $95. A lot of the other ones are near that price. I hate it when people and business' try to take advantage of others in a 'crisis' time

 

[Hikergirl]

In the 97's

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

There was a paper published on this phenomenon in January.
https://elifesciences.org/articles/49555

 

[mom2rtk]

Can't you just put a new battery in yours?

We have 2 of them, so don't need one at the moment. But when you said that I went to look on Amazon to see what was up with thermometers (no pun intended). So much for them cracking down on price gouging.! One of the exact ones we bought about 5 months ago, for $25, is being sold for almost $95. A lot of the other ones are near that price. I hate it when people and business' try to take advantage of others in a 'crisis' time

I’m sure I can. But it’s one of those little button batteries and I haven’t hunted one down yet. I wrongly assumed it would be easier to just get a new one. In normal times it probably is. I also figured if it was old enough for the battery to be dead maybe it wasn’t that reliable any longer.

 

[DisLiss]

I'm always under 98 degrees unless I'm sick.

(In fact, for many years I used to check my waking temperature, and although I had a pre-made chart, I had to alter it, because my waking temps. were too low for the chart most days.)

 

[TCRAIG]

Normal for me is anywhere between 96.2 and 96.4

 

[MamaLema]

97.8 is normal for me

 

[EMom]

97.5 or 97.6

 

[emer95]

A few years ago my husband bought one of those no-touch forehead thermometers for babies because it was an Amazon deal of the day. I mocked him out for it at the time, because we’re all adults in this house, but he’s having the last laugh now. We use it all the time now! The highest I’ve been is 97.7. I’d like another thermometer just to compare for accuracy, but as you know they’re very hard to come by.