The new normal temperature

In early April, during the lockdown period, my husband and I both had occasion to have our temperatures taken—he, for a dental procedure, and me for a wee Mohs surgery to remove a basal cell cancer from my upper lip. Our temperatures were both 97-point-something. Apparently, that’s the new normal. (I assume you recall that normal used to be 98.6.)

The 98.6 number dates to 1851 when a German physician began taking millions of temperatures from 25,000 patients in Leipzig. That standard has persisted, even though numerous more recent studies have put the average closer to 97.88 or lower.

Most scientists agree that the reason for this change is an improvement in living standards since 1851. That is, because of improved sanitation and medical care, we’re not all running around with chronic diseases such as tuberculosis, syphilis, and periodontitis—conditions that would cause our immune systems to be constantly fighting infections and thus raise our temperatures.

Body temperature varies both among people and within people. Older people tend to be cooler than younger people, and women tend to be slightly warmer than men. Temperature also fluctuates with the sleep-wake cycle (I often wake up around 2:00 in the morning feeling too hot).

Because of this coronavirus business, people are having temperatures checked more often. Supposedly, you should check yours from time to time—noting the points at which it rises and falls—so you know what’s normal for you. I’m not going to do it myself. Seems like too much trouble, especially with our old-fashioned glass thermometer.

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