Did someone ever stop you at the door and tell you to dry your hair before you “catch your death?” Has a relative sworn they’ll never get another flu shot because the last one made them sick? If so, you’ve met fall’s favorite health folklore.
Most of this advice comes from love. It gets passed down at kitchen tables, repeated in group chats, and offered by the auntie who always has a remedy ready. Some of it is harmless. Some of it steers people away from the very things that protect them, right when respiratory viruses start circulating.
Here are five of the most stubborn seasonal myths, what the science says about each one, and how to head into flu season making choices based on what’s true.
Cold air and wet hair can’t give you a cold or the flu on their own. Those illnesses come from viruses, and you have to be exposed to one to get sick.
The weather still plays a supporting role, and the science here is more interesting than the folklore. Colder months change how viruses spread and how well your body fights them off. Here’s what’s driving the seasonal spike.
When temperatures drop, we move inside. Windows stay shut, kids are back in classrooms, and holiday gatherings pack family, friends, and church members into warm rooms together. That’s a lot of shared air and shared surfaces, which gives viruses more chances to spread.
Winter air holds less moisture, and indoor heating dries it out even more. Researchers who tracked 30 years of U.S. flu data found that winter flu outbreaks tend to follow stretches of unusually low humidity. Lab research from Yale suggests dry air also weakens the airway’s defenses, slowing the tiny hair-like cilia that sweep out viral particles and mucus. A humidifier at home can help keep indoor air in a healthier range.
Here’s where your grandmother gets partial credit. A 2022 study found that the lining of the nose releases billions of tiny sacs that grab onto viruses before they can infect your cells. When the temperature inside the nose dropped by about 9°F, cells released roughly 42 percent fewer of these virus-trapping sacs. The research was done on nasal tissue in a lab, so it’s early evidence. Still, it gives a biological reason to wrap a scarf over your nose on a frigid morning.
An older Cardiff University study had volunteers soak their bare feet in cold water for 20 minutes. Afterward, 13 of 90 chilled volunteers reported a cold within five days, compared with five of 90 who kept their feet warm. The researchers suggested that chilling may let a virus someone was already carrying take hold. In other words, the chill can tip the scales, but the virus has to be there first.
So go ahead and dry your hair before heading out, especially on a bitter day. Just know that washing your hands, keeping indoor air from getting too dry, and staying home when you’re sick do far more to keep colds from spreading.
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The flu shot can’t give you the flu. The CDC states it plainly: flu vaccines cannot cause flu illness.
Flu shots contain either an inactivated virus that can no longer infect anyone or a single protein from the virus’s surface. Your immune system studies that harmless piece like a mugshot. Then, if the real flu shows up later, your body recognizes it and responds faster. The nasal spray vaccine uses a weakened live virus that’s designed to stay in the cooler nose, where it can’t cause flu illness either.
That achy, run-down feeling is your immune system doing its job. Common side effects include soreness or swelling where you got the shot, a low-grade fever, headache, and muscle aches. These usually fade within a day or two. The flu itself tends to knock people down for a week or more and can lead to pneumonia or a hospital stay.
A few other things can make it seem like the shot caused an illness. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for protective antibodies to develop, so someone exposed right before or after their shot can still get sick. Colds and other respiratory viruses are also circulating in fall, and the flu vaccine only protects against flu. When you get a sore throat the same week you got your shot, the timing can feel like proof. The virus was simply already making the rounds.
If you had a rough day after a past flu shot, plan around it. Get vaccinated on a Friday afternoon or before a lighter day, drink plenty of water, and move the arm you got the shot in to ease soreness.
Being young, fit, or rarely sick doesn’t make you immune to the flu. The virus can put healthy people in the hospital, and it can spread to the people they love.
Recent numbers make the point. In 2024 to 2025, children’s flu deaths reached the highest level since the 2009 pandemic, and about half of the children who died had no underlying medical condition, while 89 percent weren’t fully vaccinated. The 2025 to 2026 season was also rough, with preliminary CDC estimates of roughly 390,000 hospitalizations and 24,000 deaths.
The flu vaccine doesn’t guarantee you won’t catch the flu. Its real strength is lowering the odds that you’ll get seriously ill. In seasons when the vaccine matches circulating strains well, it can reduce the risk of needing to see a doctor for flu by 40 to 60 percent, and people who still get sick after vaccination tend to have milder illness.
For the 2026 to 2027 season, major medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians, recommend a flu shot for everyone six months and older. Adults 65 and older should ask for an enhanced version, such as a high-dose shot, but shouldn’t delay vaccination to find one.
Some people face higher odds of serious complications, including adults 65 and older, young children, pregnant people, and anyone living with diabetes, asthma, heart disease, or another chronic condition. Many of us fit one of those categories or live with someone who does.
Flu also hits our community harder. A CDC report found that Black adults were hospitalized with flu at rates nearly 80 percent higher than white adults, and only 42 percent of Black adults got vaccinated compared with 54 percent of white and Asian adults. The CDC pointed to gaps in access and insurance, missed chances to vaccinate at routine visits, and distrust rooted in a long history of discrimination. That distrust was earned. You deserve a provider who answers your questions with respect, and it’s fair to ask for one.
There’s no good evidence that skipping meals will break a fever or help you recover from a respiratory illness. Your body needs fuel and plenty of fluids to fight any infection.
The old saying does have a curious bit of science behind it. In a 2016 Yale study published in the journal Cell, researchers infected mice with either the flu or a food poisoning bacterium. Mice with flu that were given nutrition had significantly better survival, while feeding the mice with the bacterial infection backfired. The key factor appeared to be glucose, the sugar your body runs on.
That’s a fascinating finding in mice, and the lead researcher cautioned against turning it into medical advice for people. It also flips the folk wisdom on its head. The flu itself often causes a fever, so “starving a fever” during flu season could mean withholding the very fuel that helped flu-infected mice pull through. Bacterial infections that cause fever, like strep throat or a urinary tract infection, need a doctor’s care and often antibiotics, and fasting at home isn’t a substitute.
Fluids come first. Fever, sweating, and faster breathing all pull water out of your body. Keep water, broth, herbal tea, or an electrolyte drink within arm’s reach, and sip throughout the day. Pale yellow urine is a good sign you’re keeping up.
Eat what you can. Appetite often drops when you’re sick, and that’s normal. Small portions of easy foods count: soup, oatmeal, toast, rice, bananas, applesauce, or yogurt. Your grandmother’s chicken soup earns its reputation here, delivering fluids, salt, protein, and warmth in one bowl.
Rest is part of the treatment. Sleep gives your immune system room to work. Pushing through a workday or workout while feverish can prolong your recovery and spread the virus to others.
Call a doctor if you can’t keep fluids down, feel dizzy or confused, have trouble breathing, or run a fever that lasts more than a few days. If you’re at higher risk for complications, reach out early. Antiviral medicines for flu work best when started within the first couple of days of symptoms.
RELATED: Don’t Wait Until You’re Sick! 7 Things to Do Before Flu Season Hits
Loading up on vitamin C once the sniffles start won’t stop a cold in its tracks. Research on taking it regularly shows a modest benefit for some people, and that’s about where the evidence ends.
The most thorough look comes from a Cochrane review, which pooled placebo-controlled trials of at least 200 mg of vitamin C a day. Here’s what it found:
That last finding likely comes from a narrow group. Most of us aren’t running marathons in the snow. The research also focused on the common cold. Vitamin C hasn’t been shown to prevent or treat the flu.
Your body can only absorb so much vitamin C at once, and flushes out the extra. The upper limit for adults is 2,000 mg a day, and going above it can bring diarrhea, nausea, and stomach cramps. That’s a rough trade when you’re already feeling miserable.
You can cover your daily needs with food and get fiber and other nutrients along the way. Oranges, grapefruit, strawberries, kiwi, bell peppers, broccoli, and collard greens are all rich sources. If you like taking a daily vitamin C supplement and it agrees with your stomach, a standard dose is generally safe. Just keep your expectations realistic, and lean on the habits with stronger evidence: vaccination, handwashing, sleep, and staying home when you’re sick.
The people who taught us to bundle up and eat our soup were trying to keep us well. We can honor that care and still update the advice with what science has learned since.
If you’re unsure about the flu shot, bring your questions to your doctor or pharmacist. Ask what’s in the vaccine, which version fits your age and health, and what to expect afterward. Many pharmacies offer flu shots on a walk-in basis, and most insurance plans cover them at no cost.
One shot, a steady habit of washing your hands, a glass of water by the bed, and permission to rest when your body asks for it will carry you further than any old wives’ tale. But yes, you can still dry your hair before you head out into the cold.
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