Colds: Mom Was Right
Moms everywhere are sighing and saying, "I told you so." British researchers at the Cardiff's Common Cold Center (they research only cold and flu prevention and treatment) have demonstrated a relationship between becoming cold and getting a cold. During a common cold season the researchers took 180 individual volunteers and talked half of them into immersing their feet in ice water for 20 minutes; the other half of the volunteers placed their feet in an empty bowl for the same time period. The overall effect was a significant constriction of the blood vessels in the body, a response that helps ensure that vital internal organs are protected by keeping the warm blood circulating to them.
Constricting blood vessels and keeping warm blood away from parts of the body, especially the nose, have an effect on the body's ability to fight off infections. Circulating in that warm blood are white blood cells (WBCs), a part of the immune system that help fight infection from viruses and bacteria. WBCs are delivered to places like the nose and throat to fight off infections that we are exposed to every day. When the white blood cells can't get to the nose, we lose a vital defense mechanism.
During the five days after the chilling event, 29% of the chilled study subjects developed cold symptoms, compared to just 9% of the control group. The researchers believe that study subjects were harboring cold germs in their upper respiratory tract when they participated in the study; chilling them inhibited their ability to fight off the germs that were already there, allowing the cold viruses to become stronger. The researchers theorize that this phenomenon may be the cause for more colds in the winter than in the summer; constant exposure to cold decreases our defenses.
So mom was right in a sense; getting chilled can cause you not to "catch" a cold, but to be unable to fight one off. Following her advice to "wrap up" and "stay warm," including a coat and a scarf over the nose, may just keep you healthier this winter.
So stay warm, Laurie
Related Topics: Colds and Flu: Time is Only Sure Cure, Hold Your Own Against Colds and Flu
Constricting blood vessels and keeping warm blood away from parts of the body, especially the nose, have an effect on the body's ability to fight off infections. Circulating in that warm blood are white blood cells (WBCs), a part of the immune system that help fight infection from viruses and bacteria. WBCs are delivered to places like the nose and throat to fight off infections that we are exposed to every day. When the white blood cells can't get to the nose, we lose a vital defense mechanism.
During the five days after the chilling event, 29% of the chilled study subjects developed cold symptoms, compared to just 9% of the control group. The researchers believe that study subjects were harboring cold germs in their upper respiratory tract when they participated in the study; chilling them inhibited their ability to fight off the germs that were already there, allowing the cold viruses to become stronger. The researchers theorize that this phenomenon may be the cause for more colds in the winter than in the summer; constant exposure to cold decreases our defenses.
So mom was right in a sense; getting chilled can cause you not to "catch" a cold, but to be unable to fight one off. Following her advice to "wrap up" and "stay warm," including a coat and a scarf over the nose, may just keep you healthier this winter.
So stay warm, Laurie
Related Topics: Colds and Flu: Time is Only Sure Cure, Hold Your Own Against Colds and Flu
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