Someone once explained the old adage "starve a cold, feed a fever" to me as meaning that if a person with a cold doesn't feel like eating, don't make them eat. They need to rest. But if they have a fever, make them warmer if you can. They probably already have the chills despite their temperature, and they seek greater warmth. I've heard other interpretations of the adage that are so varied that it has become meaningless. But why would you stoke the fires of a fever, and how much is too much? It's a delicate balance between feeding a fever and fighting a fever, when your body just wants to kill an infection. Kurzgesagt, an organization that has explained the immune system to us a few times, explains what happens at the cellular level when your body produces a fever. This video ends at 9:40; the rest is advertising and promotional material.
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No wonder everyone is confused!
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In the UK, we usually say, “Feed a cold and starve a fever.”
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I don't want people to skip a video because they think it's 13 minutes long, when it's not really that long.
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Oh, Dear Miss Cellania, I do so appreciate your informing us of where ads and promotional materials are in the videos. Thank you!
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