WEBVTT - Will Temperature Changes Make You Sick?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain stuff from how stuff works. Hey, brain stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vocal bomb here, raise your hand. If a parent, grandparent,

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<v Speaker 1>or an older, wiser caretaker of any kind has scolded

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<v Speaker 1>you for not bundling up when the temperatures drop, if

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<v Speaker 1>you're waving your arm frantically, you're far from alone. Across

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<v Speaker 1>cultures and geographical boundaries. There seems to be a long held,

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<v Speaker 1>pervasive belief that sudden meteorological changes automatically trigger colds and flus.

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<v Speaker 1>But does the theory really pan out well, Yes and no.

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<v Speaker 1>According to health experts, weather driven sickness is a thing,

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<v Speaker 1>but the temperature itself is more of an indirect cause

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<v Speaker 1>of the resulting illness. In other words, it's not the

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<v Speaker 1>cold itself that makes you sick, but the environmental factors

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<v Speaker 1>related to it. A two thou two meta analysis found

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<v Speaker 1>that exposing your skin too chilly temperatures doesn't automatically make

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<v Speaker 1>you more susceptible to the common cold. What does likely

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<v Speaker 1>set you up for sickness is the drop in humidity.

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<v Speaker 1>Associate did with that sudden drop in temperature, The mucus

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<v Speaker 1>membranes in your eyes, nose, and lungs all dry out

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<v Speaker 1>those mucus membranes are your first, gooeyest line of defense

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<v Speaker 1>against bacteria and viruses, so losing the goo makes you

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<v Speaker 1>more susceptible to sickness, and because viruses are more likely

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<v Speaker 1>to survive and replicate in cold than in heat, you're

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<v Speaker 1>more likely to get sick when the weather turns frigid.

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<v Speaker 1>Study Columbia Universities Jeffrey Shaman and his colleagues compared thirty

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<v Speaker 1>years worth of climate records to health records. They determined

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<v Speaker 1>that flu epidemics almost always followed a drop in air humidity.

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<v Speaker 1>Their evidence was reviewed in a study and replicated again

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<v Speaker 1>in a two thousand nine analysis of the swine flu pandemic.

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<v Speaker 1>The research paints a pretty compelling picture of why and

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<v Speaker 1>how dry air fosters this kind of cold and flu

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<v Speaker 1>free for all. When there's moisture in the air, the

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<v Speaker 1>particles we release from our noses and mouths when we

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<v Speaker 1>cough and sneeze stay large, but in dry air they

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<v Speaker 1>break into tiny pieces that can stay suspended in the

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<v Speaker 1>environment for hours or even days, creating a virus filled

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<v Speaker 1>cloud for us to inhale. Furthermore, when it starts getting

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<v Speaker 1>cold or more likely to stay indoors for more of

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<v Speaker 1>the time, exposing ourselves to that virus soup. One easy

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<v Speaker 1>trick to lowering your risk for illness during the colder

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<v Speaker 1>months is to run an air humidifier. Study found that

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<v Speaker 1>doing so for just an hour a day could kill

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<v Speaker 1>thirty of the airborne viruses in schools. But, like everything

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<v Speaker 1>else in life, balance appears to be key since some

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<v Speaker 1>pathogens like mold actually thrive in human environments, and of course,

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<v Speaker 1>relying on good old standbys like vaccines and hand washing

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<v Speaker 1>is always a good idea to reduce your risk, whether

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<v Speaker 1>you bundle up in cold weather or not. Today's episode

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<v Speaker 1>was written by Michelle Kunstantinovski and produced by Tyler Clang.

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<v Speaker 1>For more on this and lots of other bundled topics,

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<v Speaker 1>visit our home planet, how stuff Works dot com.