Wet hair in school yard after swimming - your opinion please

littlebitdull

We are right back in the school year again - dont we know it!! Anyway most of the schools are incorporating swimming into the PE circullium now.

Neither my husband nor I have a problem with our child potentually* having wet hair after the swimming lesson and returning to school. It is the school's policy to allow the children out to yard as usual (weather permitting) even after the mornings swim lesson.

However I am aware of a large number of parents who seem to find this terrible - and to be honest I am not following their reasoning.

A cold is caused by a virus - not by getting wet or cold. In fact children are more likely to get a cold in a warm dry room - from contact with other children who may have colds.

So I was wondering if I am in the minority. Or if anyone knows of any real reason we should not allow our kids out while wet?

I look forward to hearing your opinions.

*As I am available I attend the swim lessons and help out with the kids afterwards and am in a position where I can ensure my child is dry. I dont always dry her hair - its long - but I do plait it and roll a towel around it which she keep on till she gets back to school.

Green Hornet

Its an old wives tale. There is no evidence to prove that getting wet will result in a cold. As you said, the only way to get a cold is by coming into contact with somebody else who has the virus.

Quality

My daughter goes swimming with her school also. I usually braid her hair as you do and just wash it when she comes in at night.. The school dont allow time for washing hair etc... I understand about the cold being a virus. But I am sometimes a little concerned on cold days that her head might feel cold damp and that the back of her jumper and tshirt is damp? Surely damp clothes are not healthy for kids??

Victor

Excessive shock to the system can contribute to illness.

Wet hair is a good thermal conductor and children, who don't have the same body mass or body mass to surface area as adults, so wet hair will affect them more.

Give the child a second towel for hair drying - and a hat.

lostinnappies

well when you naturally lose 90% of your heat through your head, to have wet hair in a cold court yard would lower any childs body temp, weakening their immunity and allowing them to be more prone to colds.

I dont see why they should have wet hair though, most swimming pools should have hair dryers installed. You know the ones that look like hand dryers. Or some even had normal ones secured to a wall.

lostinnappies

Green Hornet wrote: »

Its an old wives tale. There is no evidence to prove that getting wet will result in a cold. As you said, the only way to get a cold is by coming into contact with somebody else who has the virus.

not so ture im afraid, we each and every one of us carry countless viruses, and bacteria which can result in a flu or cold. Most of the time our immunity fights it off and we never see it, but it can linger there for a long time. This is why healthy people have to wear masks when going to treat or visit someone who is immune compramised.

When your immunity is lowered there is a less likely chance that you will be able to fight it off and therefore get the symptoms of a cold. Have you ever developed a cold and thought ... where did i get that, no one i know or met has a cold...... this would be why.

Nevyn

lostinnappies wrote: »

I dont see why they should have wet hair though, most swimming pools should have hair dryers installed. You know the ones that look like hand dryers. Or some even had normal ones secured to a wall.

It takes 10 minutes for me to dry my daughters hair I doubt there is the time,
adult assistance or the number of hairdriers required to get all of the children's hair dried before returning to school.

The best bet would be for the kids to have mircofibre towel to dry thier hair's with.

lostinnappies

Thaedydal wrote: »

It takes 10 minutes for me to dry my daughters hair I doubt there is the time,
adult assistance or the number of hairdriers required to get all of the children's hair dried before returning to school.

The best bet would be for the kids to have mircofibre towel to dry thier hair's with.

sry i have two boys so i forgot how long it takes to dry girls hair lol

good idea, or at least go swimming in the afternoon so that they arent outside with wet hair, or the next time they go outside is when you go to pick them up.:D

babyboom

My daughter has done swimming lessons through school for the past two years. She has really long hair which she can't dry after as there isn't time. They come back at lunch time, eat their lunch and go straight out to the yard. She has never caught a cold, developed a sore throat, ear or chest infection as a result of having wet hair. I have no problem with it at all except that sometimes I feel sorry for them if its cold outside, it must be miserable to have a wet head all day.

High&Low

Do people not use the "rubber glove" type swimming hats anymore? I thought they kept hair dry, although a bit painful to take off.

Mr. Presentable

lostinnappies wrote: »

well when you naturally lose 90% of your heat through your head, to have wet hair in a cold court yard would lower any childs body temp, weakening their immunity and allowing them to be more prone to colds.

Sorry, but this is complete nonsense. At most, 40% of heat is emanated from the head, and 60% of that through the mouth/nose. And none of it is actual "loss" - that is, your temp is not reduced when heat is given off like this.

It takes a lot of heat loss over a prolonged period to have any effect on an immune system