Warning: This is why central heating in your house can give you a cold or make you ill
SNOW is forecast to fall in the UK again tonight, according to reports. Turning your heating up, however, could cause cold and flu symptoms, and mould that could prove deadly for asthma sufferers.
Central heating feels like a lifesaver when the cold weather outside makes Britons feel run down.
Turning on the heating can make you feel unwell, however counter intuitive this feels.
Turning up the central heating can make you feel ill, giving you a cold or sore throat. Central heating can also cause deadly black mould that could make asthma sufferers severely ill.
Humidity in our homes in the winter often rises above optimum levels and can be harmful for our health as well as damaging our homes.
There has been lots of snowfall in Britain this week, and there could be more snow in the UK tonight.
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Snow UK: Warning - central heating can cause cold and flu symptoms
George Murty, consultant ear, nose and throat surgeon at University Hospitals Leicester told MailOnline that heating dries out your respiration system, ultimately opening Britons up to the threat of illness and infection.
This is because the mucus in the nose becomes dry and cannot fulfil its function to clean the nose.
He said: “The linings of the nose and sinuses are covered with little hairs called cilia. On top of them is a blanket of mucus.
“The hairs move together, sliding the blanket into the throat. This cleanses the nose and sinuses of debris.”
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However, when this dries it can cause lots of problems in the nose.
The doctor added: “If the mucus gets too dry, it turns into a scab or a thick glue that's too heavy for the hairs to shift. It causes discomfort in the sinuses, pain in the cheeks and can lead to bleeding.”
Of course, raw skin and bleeding in the nose is more likely to get infected.
Having your heating on in the night can also make you ill by interfering with your body clock.
It is well known constant exposure to light when it is dark damages health by disrupting our circadian rhythm - the body’s built-in clock - but the latest findings suggest changing the temperature also plays a role.
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Professor Ralf Stanewsky, of University College London, said: “Modern life involves artificial control of many aspects of our environment, but more natural conditions are likely to benefit our body clocks.
“There are simple ways to mimic more natural conditions, such as having colder bedroom temperatures and getting as much light in the morning as possible.”
How can the cold effect your health?
High blood pressure could be caused by cold weather, and may even lead to a heart attack. Setting the heating to at least 18°C in your home may help to prevent cold weather health conditions, said the NHS and Met Office.
