The belief that "you shouldn't drink cold water when you're sweaty" has turned out to be an urban legend.

As the temperature gradually increases across the country, CU Faculty of Medicine, Department of Infectious Diseases Faculty Member Prof. Dr. Aslıhan Candevir pointed out the common misconceptions that consuming cold water and ice cream causes illness, and pointed out that the claims are far from scientific and are urban legends.

Professor Dr. Aslıhan Candevir emphasized that this may be related to a person's upbringing. "Since childhood, we've been encountering misinformation like 'don't drink cold water, you'll get sick.' Summer is here, and now we're seeing warnings like 'don't drink cold water when you're sweating.' Unfortunately, none of this has any scientific basis. On the contrary, sweating causes dehydration. People like us who live in hot and humid climates also need water, the most beneficial liquid. There's no known harm in drinking cold water. However, this also depends on how you were raised. Sometimes people grow up without drinking cold water. In this case, they might get a sore throat because they're not used to it. But that doesn't mean they're sick. A person doesn't get sick because they drink cold water. We can easily call this an urban myth," she said.

'IT'S NOT ICE CREAM, IT'S MICROBITES THAT CAUSE INFECTIONS, STRENGTHEN YOUR IMMUNITY'

Prof. Dr. Candevir stated that a similar misconception is also said about ice cream, emphasizing that the real cause of illness is not the cold but microbes, and continued:

Ice cream doesn't have that effect at all. You can eat ice cream even in winter. Our children can enjoy it with ease. It's not true that cold causes any kind of infection or tonsillitis. It's a shame, but let's not deprive our children of ice cream. However, consuming too much of it is unhealthy because it contains sugar. It's microbes that cause infection. Our immune system is our defense mechanism against microbes. The most common microbes that cause upper respiratory tract infections are viruses. These microorganisms can be seen in all seasons. The important thing is to strengthen our immune system with a healthy diet and simple exercises that we can add to our daily routine. Furthermore, we can easily prevent the spread of diseases in society with simple precautions like maintaining hand hygiene and covering our mouths when coughing and sneezing.