# Going Out in the Cold with a Cold **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 8, 2020, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117 "2020-01-08T11:27:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/1 "2020-01-08T11:27:53Z")
Okay, I know going out in the cold doesn’t give you a cold. But if you have a cold, does going out in the cold make it worse? I’m going either way, because I have to. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/2 "2020-01-08T12:00:01Z")
It shouldn’t so long as you stay warm, hydrated, and fed, and don’t add to your body’s stresses much. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/3 "2020-01-08T12:36:04Z")
Bundle up and don’t stay outside longer than necesary. And stay dry. And when you get back inside, hydrate with water, and maybe something that makes you drink more, such as an energy drink. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/4 "2020-01-08T12:54:08Z")
Your body should be telling you. If you are very cold out there then yes you are stressing it, if not and you feel OK out there or even good, it should be fine or even good for you. Feel better 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/5 "2020-01-08T13:01:14Z")
Time permitting, before you go out, take the longest, hottest shower you can manage. Really try to move as much steam as you can through your sinuses without burning something. This tends to do wonders for my breathing. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/6 "2020-01-08T16:22:19Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Your body should be telling you. If you are very cold out there then yes you are stressing it, if not and you feel OK out there or even good, it should be fine or even good for you. Feel better 🙂 Maybe the cold _ **is** _ good for a cold because I felt a little better while waiting for the bus. I’ve drunk some mocha with cinnamon and peppermint. I think that did me some good too. As colds go, it’s a weak annoying one. Maybe I shouldn’t be out spreading it around, but I’m at work, and this is where I caught it. Two others had this before me, so if others here get it, not my fault. I didn’t bring it here. On the bus though, guilty. Watch out for those public handrails folks. But I guess, a weak annoying cold is better than a broken leg from not holding on when the bus stops. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/7 "2020-01-09T02:02:53Z")
The cold air might be irritating to your nasal passages and lungs. Won’t really _harm_ you (in general) but probably won’t feel good. Some asthmatics find that cool moist air feels good and helps their breathing. Cold air can be a trigger for many asthmatics (including me), and since a respiratory infection can cause a flare as well, I avoid spending much time outside if I’ve got a cold. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/8 "2020-01-09T02:41:16Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > Maybe the cold _ **is** _ good for a cold because I felt a little better while waiting for the bus. Did you have a fever? The fever is part of what makes us feel bad. You might have cooled yourself enough to feel better. The fever also helps kill the virus off quicker. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2020, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/9 "2020-01-10T04:40:09Z")
Besides the degradation of the front end of the respiratory system, what else is being stressed besides the hypothalamus (a guess) and other things I can’t think of with having metabolism go into hyperdrive for heat rationing in the body? As it relates to the actual progress of the symptoms of the virus, as opposed to having clammy hands winding up closer to freezing hands because of the temperature. Does the immune system get degraded when capillary flow is diverted? ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2020, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/going-out-in-the-cold-with-a-cold/846117/10 "2020-01-10T15:44:25Z")
That’s a good point. How much research has been done on stressing the body in some way when it’s already sick? If you go out in cold weather, and you start shivering, would that somehow detract or degrade from the body’s ability to fight the sickness? I know personally, I tend to be much more sensitive to my environment’s temperature when I’m sick. Normally, I need just a standard winter coat to be comfortable in cold weather. But when I’m sick, I may feel like I’m freezing to death with only 1 layer.