Different illness manifestations: living in different regions/countries

[shootingstar]

Well, I've never lived in any other except for Canada.

But aside from how aging affects manifestations of common illnesses (colds, etc.), I have to say that living in different parts of Canada made me realize that even for a reasonably healthy person like me, there can be differences of how colds, fevers can be.

Because the prairie air is much drier year round (at least in Alberta), sometimes a cold-cough, becomes a dry cough...which is something I didn't experience until I lived in this region. It pisses me off to cough like crazy but I have little phlegm in my nose/lungs. My nose gets all dried up...because of the air. The air is dry enough, that unless people have humidifiers in their homes, some people experience nose bleeds more often.

[Crankin]

It's well known that living in a dry climate wreaks havoc with your respiratory system. Add in certain desert fungi, and yes, for me, living in the dry climate of AZ was a disaster. I was sick almost all of the time, had bronchitis several times a year, and developed asthma at age 30 or so.
I am much healthier since moving back east and the humidifier goes on in my bedroom as soon as the heat starts running at night. I wake up with a sore throat if I don't run the humidifier. In our old house, we had a large humidifier in the hallway of our second floor, so all 4 of us would be able to have the advantage of the wetter air.
I don't like super humidity, either, but here, that tends to be combined with high heat, only sporadically throughout the summer.
No need to get mad at this; just go buy a small plug in humidifier for your bedroom and the nose bleeds, coughing, stuffy nose will stop. Also, use a saline nasal rinse daily in the winter.

[emily_in_nc]

That's interesting about your health in Arizona, Crankin. When I was a child plagued with both asthma and many allergies, our doctor suggested to my mother that we move to Arizona to help me! Of course we didn't, as my father's career was in North Carolina. Perhaps that was medical thinking back in those days so long ago ('60s) that dry air was good for those sorts of ailments.

I enjoyed the dry heat of the southwest when we visited in May 2006 because I hate to drip with sweat, but I do expect it would get old to have a dry throat, nose, lips, and skin, and especially as one ages and everything naturally dries out anyway. Humidity is definitely good for the skin, but combined with the high heat we can have here in Belize for much of the year, can be stifling. I prefer it somewhere in between -- both temps and humidity -- to the extremes. I find I sweat much, much more than I did when younger; probably a combination of shifting hormones and better fitness now, so too much humidity is really tough on me.

[OakLeaf]

Humidity is terrible for my skin and respiratory system! I suppose it's all individual, like most things. My face and hands break out whenever it's too humid, or when the humidity sharply rises even if it's not insanely high. Everything I read says to run a *de*humidifier most of the year to keep the humidity below about 55% so that molds and dust mites won't breed so quickly. My downstairs is so much nicer since we ripped out the carpet and put in cork flooring ... by doing that alone, the humidity dropped 10 points.

It does get awfully dry indoors in the wintertime, but if my skin, sinuses or lips start getting too dry, it's because it's too cold for me to want to drink enough water.

[Crankin]

We have a pretty high tech humidifier, with special cleaning stuff you use, to avoid the molds and fungus. I am allergic to mold, so this is important. My house is all hardwood, except for the lower level, and it's helped me considerably to sleep in a room without carpeting. The air in my bedroom is usually between 30 and 45% humidity, which is what it takes for me to wake up without feeling like my throat and nose are on fire, when the heat is running. Now, our heat is on a set back to go down to 58 at night, so it's not sweltering, but the heat is drying at any temperature. I don't deal well with high humidity and heat, either and living in Florida sucked for me.
Emily, the thinking about moving to Arizona has certainly changed since the 60s. Think of hundreds of thousands of people with asthma moving there, marrying, and now you have a huge gene pool of people genetically predisposed to it. Factor in people who felt a need to bring non-indeginous plants to the desert and change the landscape and environment by building fake lakes. Then add in over building and growth and natural geography that traps pollutants in the Valley during the winter months (smog) and keeps temperatures above 100 degrees at night, for 3-4 months of the year. The dry air and desert spores complete the picture.
I like the feel of exercising in dry weather, but when it's cold or not above 70. Combine that with 110+ degrees, and well, if you are sane, you are not exercising outside! Don't get me wrong, I enjoy going back for a little vacation in the winter every so often, but it's really nice not to have be on a nebulizer every 4 hours.

[shootingstar]

I'm in a cranky mood because I've been laid up in bed off and on because of this dry cough and nagging fever. As a last resort I take cough syrup just so I can try to sleep. Which I'm not really getting enough. So dragging into work with bloodshot eyes for past week.

I've never heard of desert fungi! Things that one learns on TE forums. Dry air in cold temperatures is preferable now for me in winter rather than cold, humid winter temperatures. There is a difference. Yes, I do notice a skin quality difference when I return to Vancouver to spend time.

I was shocked to learn that near the area where I grew up as a child, the water was hard...and led to a high incidence gallstones. Teenagers having their gallstones removed!

[Crankin]

Shooting Star, Google "Valley Fever," and you will understand about the fungi. It's a serious thing.

[emily_in_nc]

Yikes! We were thinking of spending a couple of months in Tucson in the winter, and now I'm a bit worried about that plan... Valley Fever sounds awful.

[OakLeaf]

Also I've woken up with swimmer's ear three times recently, when I haven't been swimming or using earplugs. The only thing I can figure is that it's so humid that if I get water in my ears during a shower, it won't dry all night. And it's not even close to as humid as it gets.

[Crankin]

Emily, Tucson doesn't have the air inversions Phoenix has, unless something has changed, although the risk of Valley Fever is still the same. Almost everyone who lives in the southwest has had Valley Fever, although most do not know it. I didn't know I had it, until 2005, when I went for a CT scan for something else and some "spots" showed up on my lungs. My PCP freaked and sent me to a pulmonary doctor, who thankfully, looked at me when I walked into his office and said, "Where did you live in Arizona?" But I have to explain this every time I have an x ray, as x ray techs, etc. do not know what they are looking at. I pretty much can guess which one of my bronchial illnesses was Valley Fever, and truly, I haven't been the same since.
I would still visit Tucson for a couple of months, but be mindful of any bad air alerts, use a humidifier, and avoid exercising very early in the AM in the winter.

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks for the info, Crankin. I did think it was interesting that the article stated that most who have had Valley Fever don't even know it. It's such a foreign thing to me, being an east coastie. Had not even heard of it. I have mild asthma so certainly don't want to do anything to make it worse. But I am still very much attracted to Tucson. I do nothing "very early" in the morning other than sleep, so that, at least, would not be an issue!