A 5 degree drop in the temperature of the internal tissues of the nose due to the cold can halve the effectiveness of our body’s first defense against viruses and bacteria. This is the data that comes from a study conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Northeastern University published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
“The airways protect themselves by releasing billions of tiny fluid-filled sacs into the mucus, called extracellular vesicles, which surround and attack ‘intruders’ before they enter the body. However, a 5-degree reduction in temperature is sufficient internal part of the nasal mucous membranes to knock out and halve the first line of immune defenses that are implemented in the nose”, states the past president of the Italian Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics (Sigg) Francesco Landi, director of the Aging Sciences Department of the Agostino Gemelli Irccs University Polyclinic Foundation.
Meanwhile, a sharp drop in temperatures is expected in our country in the next few days which worries the geriatricians of Sigg. “The most exposed people are above all those belonging to the older groups of the population, among whom the levels of vaccination coverage have remained far from the minimum desirable limits, and those who have not followed an adequate convalescence, not dedicating the right amount of time to recover their strength after the virus”, adds the president Sigg Andrea Ungar, professor of Geriatrics at the University of Florence.
For geriatricians “to defend oneself it is still useful to get vaccinated and it is important to protect the nose to try to maintain a higher temperature of the upper respiratory tract, using appropriate clothing for example with the use of scarves or masks in those most at risk”. Furthermore, concludes Landi, “a healthy and balanced diet and regular physical activity, associated with specific supplements, but always indicated by your doctor, are also important”
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