Heres why you caught that summer cold, again – ThePrint

Colds and the flu are generally associated with colder weather, but there have been increased reports of people suffering from summer colds this year.

A number of factors could be responsible including pandemic-era lockdowns, mask wearing and social distancing giving us less exposure to common colds in recent years.

Heatwaves and humidity fluctuations in many countries may also have played a role in the transmission of common cold viruses this year.

The advice for getting over a summer cold is the same as it would be if you caught one in the winter drink plenty of fluids, get lots of rest and eat nutritious foods.

Most of us associate colds and the flu with colder weather. But that doesnt mean you cant still catch a cold during the summer. Some viruses are even more common in summer than in the winter.

Both viruses cause typical cold symptoms, including a runny nose, low energy, muscle aches, cough, headaches and sore throat. Parainfluenza can sometimes causebronchitis and pneumoniain people who have a poorly functioning immune system. While these symptoms are similar to allergies, the telltale difference is thatallergies tend not to causefevers or body aches, and rarely cause coughs. Colds last from a few days to two weeks, but, depending on what triggered the allergy, allergy symptoms can last all summer for some people.

It seems counter-intuitive that certain viral infections are more common in warmer months when we spend more time outdoors. But in the warmer months, we also socialise and travel more meaning were mixing with a greater number of people, sometimes from different parts of the world. Many of us also gravitate towards air-conditioned indoor environments when the weather is hot.

But the structure of a virus may also explain why some spread more easily in the warmer months.

For a virus to spread and infect healthy cells, it needs to survive both outside and inside the body and it also needs to use the machinery of human cells (such as their DNA) to create copies of itself.

Viruses are surrounded by a protein coat, called a capsid, which not only gives the virus its shape but also protects the genetic material inside. The capsid also helps the virus attach to human cells to cause infections.

Some viruses (called enveloped viruses) are also surrounded by a lipid (fatty acid) envelope. This viral envelope helps the virus to avoid being destroyed by the immune system. It also plays a role in interacting with human cells to cause infection.

Many winter viruses (including influenza and RSV) are enveloped viruses. Enveloped viruses tend to bemore vulnerable to heat and drynessthan viruses that lack envelopes. This is one of the reasons why its thought that these winter cold viruses survive best in colder winter environments.

While some summer colds (such as enteroviruses) lack an envelope, others (parainfluenza virus 3) have an envelope. In fact, parainfluenza virus 3 is more common whentemperatures are high and humidity is low(though it can survive in a range of different humidities). This suggests that other parts of a viruss structure, aside from the envelope, may play some role in what conditions it can best survive and spread in but more research will be needed to better understand this.

The interplay between temperature and the immune response to a virus may also play a role. One study found that mice exposed totemperatures of 36Chave a diminished immune response against the flu virus. However, more research is needed to confirm this finding in humans.

Immune response

Many people have reported suffering from summer colds this year, leaving many to wonder why this is the case and if the pandemic has played a role.

Immunity to common cold viruses is short-lived. So each season, when we are exposed to new variants, our immune system has to adapt. But during the pandemic, various lockdown measures, such as distancing and wearing masks, limited the exposure that many people had to these viruses.

When we gathered again after lockdown,cold viruses began to circulate, but our immunity had not been boosted by exposure to that virus the previous year. While the predictability of seasonal viruses has changed since the emergence of COVID, the increases in summer colds seen this year are probably due to us travelling more, more social mixing, less mask wearing and distancing, and less exposure to respiratory viruses the previous year.

This year many parts of the world have also seen extremely hot temperatures and a spate of heatwaves. These temperatures and humidity fluctuations may have played a role in the transmission of common cold viruses this year. These factors will also become even more relevant in the future and may even change what time of year we see certain viruses. Climate change may furtherworsen the spreadofviruses in the future.

Since theres no vaccine for summer colds, the best thing you can do to avoid getting one is to stay away from people who are sick (if possible), wash your hands and avoid touching your face. If youre unlucky enough to have gotten one, the advice for getting over a cold is the same as it would be if you caught one in the winter: drink plenty of fluids, get lots of rest and eat nutritious foods. To protect others, coughing or sneezing into your elbow or tissues is also recommended.

It may also be worthwhile thinking about how you can protect yourself from getting sick as the temperatures cool in the coming months. The flu vaccine is recommended each winter for certain people, so its wise to check if you are due for a flu vaccine this year. This year the flu has been particularly bad for Australia, and predictions suggest it willbe the samefor many parts of the world this winter.

Thearticle originally appeared in the World Economic Forum.

Read more from the original source:

Heres why you caught that summer cold, again - ThePrint