Last Monday I went to my walking class (No, not to learn how to walk) and it was slightly chilly out. Maybe 50-60 degrees (Yes, in CA that IS cold) and I walked 2 miles w/o a jacket. Now I have a head cold, or sinus infection, or something. It’s miserable.
So my question is, why did I get sick from walking out in the cold?
And why is that I used to do the same in Utah, when it was around 30 degrees, and I never got sick like this? I mean, if it had something to do with the cold, wouldn’t I have been sick then too?
Finally, why is my snot clear and thin? I’m assuming that’s better than having a thick yellow snot. Is it? And if so, why?
Clear thin snot is allergy snot. Thick yellow snot is infection snot. Colds are caused by viruses, not weather. However, if you are already sick, cold can make you sicker. Do you have any other symptoms, ie, fever? If not, it’s probably new and exciting allergies that you weren’t exposed to in Utah.
Just a WAG: when it’s cold and your body temp goes down, your body is trying to compensate and your immune system suffers, thereby allowing any viruses to go nuts and take over.
But, I walked that track before, and I NEVER got sick. And this feels a lot like a head cold, I’ve had it since Monday night. But I was fine before I left the class. I mean, the allergy thing would make sense, if I had been afflicted like this before.
Well, seeing as how I am someone currently going to heroic efforts to avoid studying immunology, maybe I’ll throw in my two cents. I’m no expert on variable snot morphology (yes, that would make a great band name) like popokis, so it could be allergies. But if it is a cold, it was not caused by the temperature. You had to be infected first. However, many times those types of inapparent infections are cleared up by the immune system before any disease is produce. Cold weather reduces blood flow (with all of its wonderful chunks of immunology) to the extremities, like the nose. Therefore, it may be easier for a virus to gain a foothold in cold weather.
As for why it’s getting you at warmer temperatures, well, it’s possible that your body has adjusted to the new climate so that it now thinks of 50-60 degrees as cold enough for heat-conserving measure. OTOH, maybe you just weren’t infected in your previous very-cold walks.