Dr. Ivan Leskov, an otolaryngologist, said that the driver should use the air conditioner in the car with caution, because exposure to a sudden stream of cold air may lead to an exacerbation of infections.
“The air conditioner in the car itself cannot cause the disease, because it maintains a comfortable temperature of 18-22 degrees Celsius, but sudden cooling of the body leads to the activation of inflammation already present in the body. For example, air conditioning is often considered the cause of trigeminal neuralgia, although the disease usually occurs against the background of dental problems. But if the oral cavity is healthy, the face will not swell under the influence of air conditioning,” he told Gazeta news.
According to him, a person can get a sore throat when turning on the air conditioner if he already suffers from chronic sinusitis or tonsillitis. He stressed that a person should prepare for hot weather in advance, so it is recommended to treat such chronic diseases in the fall and spring.
“Chronic otitis externa can be contracted in the summer after swimming in a pool of polluted water, immediately sitting behind the wheel of a car, and being exposed to air conditioning. This is wrong because first, the water must be removed from the ears, just as swimmers do. Then the hair must be dried well and the body dried before getting into the car,” he says.