Cold weather myths debunked

A lot of the tales you heard growing up may not be scientifically true. Anna Azallion takes a look at common weather misconceptions.

Transcript

00:00Everybody knows if you have a shower, you don't dry your hair and go inside, you're going to catch a cold.

00:05Well, actually that's not the case, right? You don't get cold from being cold, you get cold from a virus.

00:14That is just one of the cold weather myths that we have heard probably since we were kids, right?

00:20But a lot of these things that we took as fact might not be all that true. So let's break down

00:25that first one that you just kind of got a sneak peek at the truth there. Does being exposed to

00:31cold weather actually possibly make you sick? Well, not really. Bacteria and viruses are what cause

00:38infections. Now, these are more common maybe in the winter months, but it's not because it's

00:43cold per se. Some of the reasons are people staying inside, which we do when the weather

00:48is cold, is associated with more often getting sick. Also, school is in session during these

00:54months and all of those kids together, you're exposed to more germs and naturally can catch a

00:59virus. And cold-causing viruses are believed to survive better in lower humidity, which there's

01:05lower humidity during these colder winter months. So there's some reasons that you are more susceptible

01:11to getting sick during the winter, but it's not because it's cold. Here's another one. You lose

01:16most of your body heat through your head. This is another myth. It is not true. Now, your head and

01:21chest are more sensitive to temperature changes, but covering any part of your body is equally

01:28effective. So the bottom line is if your head is cold, put on a hat. If your hands are cold,

01:33put on gloves. That's kind of the big takeaway here. Let's talk about hot drinks, this being

01:38a great way to warm up. It actually has the opposite effect. It can actually cool your body

01:43down faster because it can make you sweat more, which is designed to cool down your body.