{"id":14182,"date":"2013-12-10T00:52:58","date_gmt":"2013-12-10T05:52:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saratoga.com\/how-should-i-know\/2013\/12\/dont-go-outside---your-hair-is-dripping-wet.html"},"modified":"2017-11-08T13:26:17","modified_gmt":"2017-11-08T18:26:17","slug":"dont-go-outside-your-hair-is-dripping-wet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saratoga.com\/how-should-i-know\/2013\/12\/dont-go-outside-your-hair-is-dripping-wet\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t go outside – your hair is dripping wet!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alright everyone, I can finally<\/em> confess why I’ve been so absent. I just moved across the country to Silicon Valley and it has been a hectic process. Now that it’s ended and everything is unpacked, I can get back to the more important things… like answering your questions!<\/p>\n

And just in time to since it’s cold and flu season \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n

This week’s question is all about what leaves you susceptible to these diseases.<\/p>\n

I’m sure that when you were a kid, your mother would yell at you not to go outside with a wet head because you could catch a cold. Or she’d make you come back in for your sweater. Or yell at you to put on a hat. But sorry to say to all the mother’s out there, it is now known that being wet or cold does not cause you to catch a cold. The cause is the more than 200 hundred viruses that can lead to the common cold but the rhinovirus is by far the most common.<\/p>\n

These viruses are airborne. So, when someone sneezes droplets of mucus are released into the air. Then you walk by and breathe in those droplets, causing you to get sick.<\/p>\n

If that isn’t scary enough, they can live on any surface in your house, out at the mall or in the office. So, hand washing and keeping your hands away from mouth, nose, and eyes is probably your best defense.<\/p>\n

So where is the wet head theory come from?<\/p>\n

Well, it probably started around 1878 when French chemist Louis Pasteur performed some experiments on some unlucky chickens. He wanted to see if he exposed the chickens to anthrax and dipped their feet in freezing cold water, would it increase the likelihood of catching the illness. <\/p>\n

In the first round of the experiment, all the chickens caught anthrax and died. Then in a second trial, he repeated the exact same experiment but then wrapped the chickens in a warm blanket. The chickens survived.<\/p>\n

So from this simple experiment it makes sense to think being wet and cold can lower your immunity.<\/p>\n

Another study done during World War I, showed that soldiers who were in out in the trenches, cold and wet, were much more likely to get sick and die than those in the barracks.<\/p>\n

Some people also believe that the body’s heat leaves through the head (hence the obsession with hats on babies). This is simply not true; heat loss is pretty evenly distributed throughout the body.<\/p>\n

So, if the cold and wetness isn’t the problem then why do we get sick in the winter? Well, one reason is there is very low humidity. When the humidity is low, it dries out your nasal passages making it easier for viruses to enter the body.<\/p>\n

Not to mention, in the winter we spend a lot more time inside… together. And since these diseases are so easily transmitted from person to person, once one person is infected, everyone else is doomed. Think about schools, work, animal shelters… all germ factories.<\/p>\n

The “theory of togetherness” is further supported by the fact that in areas where it does not get cold, cold and flu season correlates with the rainy season. People tend to stay inside, when it rains and therefore get sick.<\/p>\n

So, what can you do to protect yourself from getting sick this cold and flu season?<\/p>\n

If you want to be really sure, quarantine yourself to your bedroom and stay there until the season is over. But if you do that you will probably miss all the holiday fun that will be upon us soon. My recommendation? Wash your hands, buy a humidifier and pop some vitamin C so you can enjoy the holiday treats!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Alright everyone, I can finally confess why I’ve been so absent. I just moved across the country to Silicon Valley and it has been a hectic process. Now that it’s ended and everything is unpacked, I can get back to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":78,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[39,62,110,153],"class_list":["post-14182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-cold","tag-flu","tag-quarantine","tag-vitamin-c"],"yoast_head":"\r\nDon't go outside - your hair is dripping wet! - How Should I Know? 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