When I was a kid and i learnt about diseases in school it was that micorganisms of various kinds cause them. However since growing up I’d always been told by my parents to cover myself properly when being exposed to the cold e.g. wearing warm clothes after getting out of a hot shower in winter even though you might not immediately feel cold.
I asked my science teacher and he told me that when exposed to temperatures outside of what our body is normally used to, our body becomes more susceptible to being ill because our immune system is compromised. I think about this every now and then if I’m ever cold or sick because I didnt feel fully satisfied with his answer. I’ve also read in some places on the internet that this is just an old wives tale. Would someone give me a definitive answer to this query? ( I am currently on sick leave after being in a cold place for a while and I was thinking about this again)
In: Biology
It’s a bunch of things that start to go wrong either due to the cold itself or drier air. Your body works very hard to keep your organs at a very exact temperature. Being exposed to the cold makes your body have to work extra hard to keep your organs warm, diverting energy away from your immune system to do this. Kinda like diverting power from the shields to life support on a spaceship. In addition to this, cold air dries up mucous in your nose, which stops it from filtering out things that can make you sick if they get inside your lungs.
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