You shouldn’t miss out on proper ventilation, even if you have a cold. Fresh air improves the indoor climate and reduces the viral load. But there are a few things you should pay attention to if you have a cold.
Ventilating when you have a cold can be good for your health, but it can also be detrimental. In principle, it is recommended to regularly replace the air in the room if you have a runny nose. But there are a few things you should keep in mind when you let fresh air into your room when you have a cold – otherwise your cold could be accompanied by other symptoms.
Ventilation when you have a cold: That’s why it’s good
One thing in advance: According to the SWR, colds are not primarily caused by cold, but by pathogens that spread via the so-called droplet infection. The viruses adhere to aerosols that float through the air. They get there when a sick person coughs, talks or sneezes. If you then absorb these aerosols through breathing, for example, they land on your mucous membranes, where the viruses settle and multiply.
The fact that you have a cold at all is not because you have ventilated too much. In fact, airing out when you have a cold can be recommended for several reasons:
- Ventilation exchanges the air in the room, which keeps the virus concentration low. Among other things, this makes it less likely that another person will become infected from you.
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According to Netdoktor, ventilation improves the indoor climate, which is often too dry due to heating, especially in winter. On the one hand, dry heating air promotes the survival of viruses in the air, and on the other hand, the cilia in the nasal mucosa also suffer. This means they are less mobile and cannot fulfill their task of transporting pathogens out of the nose as effectively.
You have to pay attention to this if you want to ventilate when you have a cold
Proper ventilation can therefore contribute to an optimal room climate with humidity between 40 and 60 percent. This prevents the mucous membranes from drying out and makes them more resilient.
This is how to ventilate properly when you have a cold:
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Avoid leaving windows open for long periods of time to avoid being exposed to drafts for too long.
- Instead, you should ventilate briefly and regularly. To do this, open the windows completely instead of tilting them. This ensures more efficient air exchange, so you can quickly close the window again and avoid excessive heat loss from the room. You can read more about what is important when it comes to shock ventilation in our guide: Shock ventilation: How often, for how long and at what time of day?
Although cold air itself is not the cause of colds, drafts can certainly make a cold worse: drafts constantly exchange the warm air around the body, causing the surface of the body to cool down. This also leads to a decrease in blood flow to adjacent areas of the body, for example that of the throat mucosa.
Drafts can dry out the mucous membranes of the nose and throat. Cold viruses then find it easier to establish themselves there. In addition, according to Netdoktor, if you breathe in cold air, it can irritate the respiratory tract and provoke an additional cough.
Therefore, if you are sick, you should not forego ventilation. But avoid staying in the draft for too long. Ventilate intermittently to ensure a quick exchange of air and protect your neck and head with a scarf and hat so that these areas of the body do not get too cold. This way you can also avoid a stiff neck, which can also be a result of drafts.
Edited by Freya Petersen
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