为什么现在了解你的体温很重要

为什么现在了解你的体温很重要

Until recently, you probably only thought about your body temperature around flu season. But during the pandemic, knowing your body temperature is critical because fever can be one of the key symptoms of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus.

直到最近，你可能只考虑流感季节的体温。但在大流行期间，了解自己的体温至关重要，因为发烧可能是COVID-19的主要症状之一。COVID-19是由冠状病毒引起的疾病。

It's important to know your normal body temperature so you'll be able to tell when you have a fever. (Photo: Quality Stock Arts/Shutterstock)

What's a 'normal' body temperature?

“正常”体温是多少?

You probably grew up believing normal body temperature was 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius). The number is credited to two different groups of 19th-century researchers, but most widely believed to be based on a study by German physician Carl Wunderlich. He reportedly analyzed more than 1 million temperature readings via armpit from more than 25,000 people and found 98.6 F (37 C) was the average temperature of healthy adults.

你可能从小就相信正常的体温是华氏98.6度(37摄氏度)。这个数字是19世纪两个不同的研究小组得出的，但大多数人认为它是基于德国医生卡尔·旺德里希的一项研究。据报道，他分析了超过25000人的腋下超过100万的温度读数，发现98.6华氏度(37摄氏度)是健康成年人的平均温度。

Wunderlich also recorded some interesting anomalies with temperature. He found it was lowest between 2 and 8 a.m. and highest between 4 and 9 p.m. He also noted that women tended to have slightly higher temperatures than men, and younger people generally have higher temperatures than older people.

温德里奇还记录了一些有趣的温度异常现象。他发现，早晨2点到8点是最低温度，下午4点到9点是最高温度。他还指出，女性的体温往往比男性略高，而年轻人的体温通常比老年人高。

Why temperatures could be falling

为什么体温会下降

One primary possibility is that today, people have lower metabolic rates. "Like a car engine that’s idling, your body expends energy just keeping things going, and that generates heat," writes Robert H. Shmerling, MD, in Harvard Health. "A lower metabolic rate in modern times could be due to higher body mass (some studies link this with lower metabolic rate), or better medical treatments, preventive measures, and overall health."

一种主要的可能性是，如今人们的代谢率较低。“就像一个空转的汽车引擎，你的身体消耗能量只是为了保持运转，然后产生热量，”哈佛健康医学博士罗伯特·h·什莫林写道。“现代较低的代谢率可能是由于较高的体重(一些研究认为这与较低的代谢率有关)，或更好的医疗、预防措施和整体健康。”

How to take your temperature

如何量体温

Many businesses are now using non-contact infrared thermometers to do temperature checks. (Photo: Tong_stocker/Shutterstock)

Because a fever is one of the symptoms of COVID-19, many people are being asked to take their temperature as they enter restaurants and hair salons, offices, and other businesses. You might even check yours regularly at home. It's important that you know your normal temperature so you know when it's elevated.

由于发烧是COVID-19的症状之一，许多人在进入餐馆、发廊、办公室和其他企业时被要求测量体温。你甚至可以在家里定期检查。知道你的正常体温是很重要的，这样你就知道什么时候体温会升高。

In most cases, a fever is considered to be a temperature of 100.4 F (38 C) or above.

在大多数情况下，发烧被认为是华氏100.4度(38摄氏度)或以上。

If you have an old glass thermometer with mercury, don't use it. These thermometers were popular before digital thermometers were available, but they were hard to read and not always accurate.

如果你有一个旧的水银玻璃温度计，不要使用它。在数字体温计出现之前，这些体温计很流行，但是它们很难读懂，而且不总是准确的。

"The main reason they are no longer recommended is that mercury can poison you. This can happen when the glass breaks and mercury is released. If you do still have one of these thermometers, you should contact your local waste department and find how to dispose of hazardous waste properly," says the Cleveland Clinic. "There are glass thermometers available that do not use mercury, but most people prefer the digital thermometers that do not shatter."

“它们不再被推荐的主要原因是汞会毒害你。这可能发生在玻璃破裂和汞释放的时候。如果你还有一个这样的温度计，你应该联系当地的废物处理部门，找到正确处理危险废物的方法，”克利夫兰诊所说。“市面上有不使用水银的玻璃温度计，但大多数人更喜欢不会破碎的数字温度计。”