Have you ever caught a nasty cold from being outside in chilly weather with wet hair? Spoiler alert: You actually didn’t ― no matter what your grandparents, great aunt and parents say.

The pervasive myth is something that older generations have told people for decades, but going outside with wet hair in the winter simply is not a possible way to catch a cold, according to doctors.

“There’s no evidence or literature to suggest that,” said Dr. Swapnil Patel, the vice chair of the department of medicine at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center and K. Hovnanian Children’s Hospital in New Jersey.

Going out with wet hair on a wintry day does decrease your body temperature, making you feel colder, but you won’t actually end up sick as a result, said Dr. Parul Goyal, an associate professor of clinical medicine at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. (This is also true for going out without a jacket, she said.)

If you do notice that you suddenly have the sniffles after spending time outdoors........

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