1 00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:07,560 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio. Hi brain Stuff. 2 00:00:07,600 --> 00:00:10,600 Speaker 1: I'm Lauren Vogelbomb, and today's episode is a classic from 3 00:00:10,640 --> 00:00:14,200 Speaker 1: the vault. This one is timely here in our headquarters 4 00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: in Atlanta, anyway, because the temperature has been bouncing from 5 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 1: near freezing to downright summary, and certainly we have a 6 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:26,240 Speaker 1: few colds going around. But is it the actual changes 7 00:00:26,280 --> 00:00:31,520 Speaker 1: in temperature that make people sick? Hey, brain Stuff, Lauren 8 00:00:31,560 --> 00:00:34,920 Speaker 1: vogel Bomb. Here, raise your hand. If a parent, grandparent, 9 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,239 Speaker 1: or an older, wiser caretaker of any kind has scolded 10 00:00:38,240 --> 00:00:41,519 Speaker 1: you for not bundling up when the temperatures drop, if 11 00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:44,320 Speaker 1: you are waving your arm frantically, you're far from alone. 12 00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: Across cultures and geographical boundaries, there seems to be a 13 00:00:48,080 --> 00:00:52,560 Speaker 1: long held, pervasive belief that sudden meteorological changes automatically trigger 14 00:00:52,640 --> 00:00:56,760 Speaker 1: colds and flus. But does the theory really pan out? Well, 15 00:00:57,080 --> 00:01:01,440 Speaker 1: yes and no. According to health experts, weather driven sickness 16 00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 1: is a thing, but the temperature itself is more of 17 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:07,440 Speaker 1: an indirect cause of the resulting illness. In other words, 18 00:01:07,480 --> 00:01:09,840 Speaker 1: it's not the cold itself that makes you sick, but 19 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:13,080 Speaker 1: the environmental factors related to it. A two thousand and 20 00:01:13,080 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: two meta analysis found that exposing your skin to chili 21 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:20,000 Speaker 1: temperatures doesn't automatically make you more susceptible to the common cold. 22 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:22,560 Speaker 1: What does likely set you up for sickness is the 23 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:26,119 Speaker 1: drop in humidity. Associated with that sudden drop in temperature, 24 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:29,360 Speaker 1: the mucous membranes in your eyes, nose, and lungs all 25 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 1: dry out. Those mucous membranes are your first gooiest line 26 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:36,400 Speaker 1: of defense against bacteria and viruses, so losing the goo 27 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,280 Speaker 1: makes you more susceptible to sickness, and because viruses are 28 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:43,400 Speaker 1: more likely to survive and replicate in cold than in heat, 29 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:46,160 Speaker 1: you're more likely to get sick when the weather turns frigid. 30 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:50,440 Speaker 1: In a twenty ten study, Columbia Universities Jeffrey Shaman and 31 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 1: his colleagues compared thirty years worth of climate records to 32 00:01:53,640 --> 00:01:57,520 Speaker 1: health records. They determined that flu epidemics almost always followed 33 00:01:57,560 --> 00:02:00,720 Speaker 1: a drop in air humidity. Their evidence reviewed in a 34 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 1: twenty fifteen study and replicate it again in a two 35 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:06,640 Speaker 1: thousand and nine analysis of the swine flu pandemic. The 36 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 1: research paints a pretty compelling picture of why and how 37 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:12,960 Speaker 1: dry air fosters this kind of cold and flu free 38 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 1: for all. When there's moisture in the air, the particles 39 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: we release from our noses and mouths when we cough 40 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:21,800 Speaker 1: and sneeze stay large, but in dry air they break 41 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:24,600 Speaker 1: into tiny pieces that can stay suspended in the environment 42 00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:28,400 Speaker 1: for hours or even days, creating a virus filled cloud 43 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: for us to inhale. Furthermore, when it starts getting cold 44 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:34,680 Speaker 1: or more likely to stay indoors for more of the time, 45 00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: exposing ourselves to that virus soup. One easy trick to 46 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:42,520 Speaker 1: lowering your risk for illness during the colder months is 47 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: to run an air humidifier. A twenty thirteen study found 48 00:02:46,080 --> 00:02:47,959 Speaker 1: that doing so for just an hour a day could 49 00:02:48,040 --> 00:02:51,680 Speaker 1: kill thirty percent of the airborne viruses in schools. But 50 00:02:51,919 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 1: like everything else in life, balance appears to be key, 51 00:02:54,760 --> 00:02:58,880 Speaker 1: since some pathogens like mold actually thrive in human environments, 52 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:02,360 Speaker 1: and of course, relying on good old standbys like vaccines 53 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:04,880 Speaker 1: and hand washing is always a good idea to reduce 54 00:03:04,919 --> 00:03:07,720 Speaker 1: your risk, whether you bundle up in cold weather or not. 55 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,520 Speaker 1: Today's episode is based on the article can the change 56 00:03:16,520 --> 00:03:19,440 Speaker 1: in temperature really make you sick? On HowStuffWorks dot Com, 57 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 1: written by Michelle constantinofsky. Brainstuff is a production of iHeartRadio 58 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:25,680 Speaker 1: in partnership with hostuffworks dot Com and is produced by 59 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: Tyler Klang. Four more podcasts from iHeartRadio. Visit the iHeartRadio app, 60 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:32,760 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.