Chilly feet can bring on cold

British scientists say they have proof that a drop in body temperature can kickstart viruses which lie dormant in people during the cold season, from October to March.

And getting your feet wet, they found, can triple the risk of developing cold symptoms such as sore throat, sneezing and coughing. Staff at the Common Cold Centre in Cardiff, Wales, asked 90 hardy volunteers to keep their bare &to=http://english.pravda.ru/sport/2002/07/19/32825.html' target=_blank>feet in icy water for 20 minutes. A third of them developed colds during the following five days, compared to just 9 per cent of another test group who did not get their feet wet, reports CTV.ca.

According to Reuters, researchers at Cardiff University's Common Cold Centre paid 90 students to sit for 20 minutes with their bare feet in buckets of cold water.