01/07/2026 07:27 - Salud
As winter tightens its grip across Argentina, colds and respiratory infections are making their annual comeback, filling doctor's offices with patients seeking relief from seasonal ailments.
Argentine physician Dr. Carlos Sabagh sat down with local media outlet Contexto Tucumán to explain exactly why winter creates the perfect storm for viral infections, and what simple changes you can make to protect yourself.
According to Dr. Sabagh, when temperatures drop, your body prioritizes protecting vital organs through a physiological process called peripheral vasoconstriction.
When it's cold outside, you notice your nose getting cold, your hands getting cold, and your feet getting cold. This happens because your body must preserve heat in your torso to maintain your central organs, explains Dr. Sabagh.
This natural reaction reduces blood flow to peripheral areas, including your nose. With less blood comes fewer white blood cells, which creates an opportunity for viruses to penetrate more quickly and easily.
Beyond weakened nasal defenses, there's another critical factor: respiratory viruses survive longer in cold environments.
When it's cold, the protective coating around viruses becomes like hard gelatin, allowing them to survive for extended periods. When it's warm, that layer melts away, explains Dr. Sabagh. He also noted that nasal temperature during winter hovers around 33 degrees Celsius (91°F), creating ideal conditions for viral replication.
Faced with this double threat, Dr. Sabagh offers a simple but powerful solution: cover your nose during cold days. Whether you use a scarf or even a face mask, creating a physical barrier provides additional protection against respiratory viruses by keeping your nasal passages warmer and maintaining better blood flow.
Vasoconstriction is the narrowing of blood vessels that occurs naturally in response to cold. Your body reduces blood flow to your extremities and peripheral areas—nose, hands, feet—to conserve heat in your core and protect vital organs like your heart, lungs, and brain.
However, this protective mechanism comes at a cost: when blood flow to your nose decreases, so does the delivery of white blood cells, the cells responsible for fighting infections. This leaves your respiratory pathways more vulnerable to viral invasion.
Source: Que Pasa Salta / Contexto Tucumán
Alfredo S. Quiroga
