I have noticed that when I wash my hair late in the evening,and sleep with my hair wet inorder to air dry it overnight I wake up feeling sick. I wake up with a mild cold, headache, stuffiness and/or congestion. I tired to do an overnight conditioning treatment and my symptoms were even worst. Has anyone experienced this before?
Can airdrying lead to sickness?
- Thread starter Xavier
- Start date
sunshinelady
New Member
No, there is no actual connection between wetness and sickness. However, everyone gets sick when they get wet unexpectedly. Don't know why this is.
Princess Pie
New Member
The only way my hair gets dry is by air drying. I even leave my house in the middle of winter with damp hair. I've never noticed any correlation between wet hair and sickness... but if it doesn't work for you, then you shouldn't do it. Everybody is different.
C
chica_canella
Guest
Well, when your hair is wet your pores on your head are open more which means more heat can escape through the top of your head. And I think it has something to do with your body working over time to fight off your body losing more heat than usual and add in the fact that most people's homes are crazy hot to make up for your body losing heat quicker.
I sleep under a window, so going to bed with wet hair is a no-no.
I sleep under a window, so going to bed with wet hair is a no-no.
sikora
Well-Known Member
No, there is no actual connection between wetness and sickness. However, everyone gets sick when they get wet unexpectedly. Don't know why this is.
I'm a victim of this right now. I've been airdrying overnight forever with no sniffles, but I got wet last Tuesday during my lunch hour and I've been sniffling since Thursday.
ajoyfuljoy
Well-Known Member
I hope someone answers this question because it has always baffled me too!
ShiShiPooPoo
Well-Known Member
I have always experienced this. So much that I have often asked myself how caucasians leave the house everyday with a wet head and not get sick. When I sleep on a wet head I'm asking for it in the morning. The only way that it doesn't happen is when I sleep with rollers. I guess as long as my scalp is dry it does better.
Well, when your hair is wet your pores on your head are open more which means more heat can escape through the top of your head. And I think it has something to do with your body working over time to fight off your body losing more heat than usual and add in the fact that most people's homes are crazy hot to make up for your body losing heat quicker.
I sleep under a window, so going to bed with wet hair is a no-no.
Reading this makes me think of when parents say not to wash a baby's hair right before going out in the winter because it will make them sick. Am I making that one up?
I think it might be the combination of my open pores and the AC. 
There has to be a correlation.
kismettt
Well-Known Member
so i only half listened in bio, but from what i gathered/and now remember....
wetness doesn't cause sickness. it just makes you more...screw it. GOOGLE
here's what i got:
Myth: You’ll catch a cold going outside with wet hair.
Reality: Sorry Mom, but running to class with hair still wet from a shower will not trigger a cold or the flu. To get sick, you have to actually be exposed to the virus, which doesn’t happen just by going out in the cold. “There was a study with people naked in ice water with fans blowing on them to see if they would get sick. It didn’t work,” Whiting said.
&
If you go outside with wet hair, you'll catch a cold.
False. Cold weather, wet hair, and chills don't cause colds. Viruses do. People tend to catch colds more often in the winter because these viruses are spread more easily indoors, where there may be more contact with dry air and people with colds. Dry air - indoors or out - can lower a person's resistance to infection.
So I was kinda on the right track....?
wetness doesn't cause sickness. it just makes you more...screw it. GOOGLE
here's what i got:
Myth: You’ll catch a cold going outside with wet hair.
Reality: Sorry Mom, but running to class with hair still wet from a shower will not trigger a cold or the flu. To get sick, you have to actually be exposed to the virus, which doesn’t happen just by going out in the cold. “There was a study with people naked in ice water with fans blowing on them to see if they would get sick. It didn’t work,” Whiting said.
&
If you go outside with wet hair, you'll catch a cold.
False. Cold weather, wet hair, and chills don't cause colds. Viruses do. People tend to catch colds more often in the winter because these viruses are spread more easily indoors, where there may be more contact with dry air and people with colds. Dry air - indoors or out - can lower a person's resistance to infection.
So I was kinda on the right track....?
dillard
New Member
I always rollerset and airdry and I never feel sick... maybe you can try softer rollers to eliminate the stiff neck?!
You only get sick from germs... but I've heard that when your body temperature drops either from cold weather or wet weather, your defenses drop and you become more prone to illness... not sure if that's true though.
You only get sick from germs... but I've heard that when your body temperature drops either from cold weather or wet weather, your defenses drop and you become more prone to illness... not sure if that's true though.
Miss*Tress
Well-Known Member
A few summers ago, I was running every morning, CO washing, and wearing a wet bun to work every single day. By August, I came down with acute bronchitis that took me a whole month to recover from.
Some people are more susceptible to the effects of wet hair, so don't air dry if you feel unwell afterwards.
Some people are more susceptible to the effects of wet hair, so don't air dry if you feel unwell afterwards.
But I do understand what some of you ladies are saying thanks for the feedback.
Vshanell
FKA Pokahontas
Yes this happens to me whenever I air-dry in cooler weather and Lord help me if I get my shirt wet in the process....I'm really asking for it then. I just can't air-dry in cool/cold weather w/o getting the sniffles or sore throat. I always sit under the dryer then I'm ok. This even happens to me in the summer sometimes too, like if I go to sleep with a wet head no matter how hot it is I always wake up feeling bad.
spiceykitten
New Member
Yes for me and my mum.
I am not sure what to do because my hair thrives on being washed daily or every other day but I just cannot take the sick feeling. I try to wash as early as possible.
I am not sure what to do because my hair thrives on being washed daily or every other day but I just cannot take the sick feeling. I try to wash as early as possible.
itismehmmkay
Well-Known Member
My ass is sick right now from nightly washes 
I think I may just have to start washing weekly and dry-rolling at night again. And call it a day!!
I think I may just have to start washing weekly and dry-rolling at night again. And call it a day!!
sunshinebeautiful
Well-Known Member
I airdry year-round and it doesn't make me sick.
Sweet_Ambrosia
Well-Known Member
I airdry all the time, I haven't been sick because of it.
I think if your immune system isn't as strong as it should be, then your body may be more prone to colds/viruses and such, just my take on it anyway.
I think if your immune system isn't as strong as it should be, then your body may be more prone to colds/viruses and such, just my take on it anyway.
kaykaybobay
New Member
wetting the scalp does open your pores, usually when sick my mom would never let me get my hair wet nor my doctors as a kid because wetting the scalp would lead to getting sicker, so far I have found it true , at least for me. Just the same as showering or bathing with a fever which can shoot ya fever up and make ya sicker as well.
So now I usually airdry early in the afternoon or just sit my butt under a dryer.
Isis
New Member
ITA with Sweet Ambrosia about the immune system. If the immune system is not strong to begin with (body too acidic), one is more prone to getting sick--whether the hair is wet or dry. I've been airdrying overnight, twice each week for over four years now. I have never been sick from doing this.
the_UnPrettiest_pretty
Beauty IS skin deep.
I always airdry my hair, even during the winter. I have noticed though that going outside with wet or damp hair during winter does eventually lead to me getting sick. So, to prevent this, when I wash my hair during the winter, I wash my hair right before bed, let it airdry overnight, and finish it off by blowdrying it the next morning so that I don't walk out into the cold with a damp scalp.
itismehmmkay
Well-Known Member
So, I was complaining earlier about being sick b/c of airdrying.
But I've still been airdrying recently and have been okay.
Soooooo....it may not so much lead to sickness as it can make you more suceptible if you're not careful.
For instance:
- My Grandma mentioned that the point is to not go to sleep w/ your hair still wet. Wash it early enough in the evening to where it's a good percentage of being dry before hitting the sack
- No vents/no ceiling fans. All that air up my nose makes me sick; the probably goes up w/ wet hair I bet.
- Make sure hair is covered. I def wear a scarf at night. As an added feature, I find that I'm warmer and more "protected" when I cover my head w/ the blanket....awwww
HTH
But I've still been airdrying recently and have been okay.
Soooooo....it may not so much lead to sickness as it can make you more suceptible if you're not careful.
For instance:
- My Grandma mentioned that the point is to not go to sleep w/ your hair still wet. Wash it early enough in the evening to where it's a good percentage of being dry before hitting the sack
- No vents/no ceiling fans. All that air up my nose makes me sick; the probably goes up w/ wet hair I bet.
- Make sure hair is covered. I def wear a scarf at night. As an added feature, I find that I'm warmer and more "protected" when I cover my head w/ the blanket....awwww
HTH
Vshanell
FKA Pokahontas
That could be true for some but for me, my immune system is good because I rarely get colds, maybe once a year when the seasons change and I work with the public so I'm around germs all day long but when I air-dry in cold weather that does it every time so I don't know what it is with me. I will listen to my body though and not do it.
Similar threads
