98.6 is old news
October 18, 2023 9:42 AM Subscribe
Personalized Temperature Ranges. A simple tool designed to help you know whether your current body temperature is normal based on your age, height, weight, sex (M/F only, sorry) and time of day. Brought to you by Stanford University's Department of Medicine.
My base temperature has always been around 97.7 for my entire life. If I'm at 98.6, I'm probably ill. And if I'm at 99.6, that's a fever for me, even if it doesn't qualify medically.
posted by grumpybear69 at 9:52 AM on October 18, 2023 [19 favorites]
posted by grumpybear69 at 9:52 AM on October 18, 2023 [19 favorites]
Cool!
I've been wondering about this since COVID-19 started, because I took my temperature far more regularly than ever before, and sometimes I'd feel feverish and the temperature would be "normal" or just a tiny bit over. Whereas on days where I felt fine, it would be way below normal. The graph matches my experience perfectly.
posted by mumimor at 9:53 AM on October 18, 2023 [8 favorites]
I've been wondering about this since COVID-19 started, because I took my temperature far more regularly than ever before, and sometimes I'd feel feverish and the temperature would be "normal" or just a tiny bit over. Whereas on days where I felt fine, it would be way below normal. The graph matches my experience perfectly.
posted by mumimor at 9:53 AM on October 18, 2023 [8 favorites]
I've always been in the 97s, tool. At 98.6 I feel feverish and unwell!
posted by thomas j wise at 10:01 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by thomas j wise at 10:01 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
Agreed, 98.6 was always about a degree too high for me.
But I also want to say: I think this is the only time I've seen an online form that had "Female" listed before "Male."
posted by AlSweigart at 10:02 AM on October 18, 2023 [6 favorites]
But I also want to say: I think this is the only time I've seen an online form that had "Female" listed before "Male."
posted by AlSweigart at 10:02 AM on October 18, 2023 [6 favorites]
Great no frills highly useful resource!
posted by gwint at 10:11 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by gwint at 10:11 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
Cold blooded lizard people of the world, we are seen!
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 10:27 AM on October 18, 2023 [27 favorites]
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 10:27 AM on October 18, 2023 [27 favorites]
I say what's, what's cooler than being cool? (Ice cold!)
posted by mochapickle at 10:53 AM on October 18, 2023 [11 favorites]
posted by mochapickle at 10:53 AM on October 18, 2023 [11 favorites]
I played around with it and changing the personal inputs (age, sex, height, weight) moves the numbers by 0.1 or 0.2 at most, which is tiny compared to the uncertainty bands. That is, the difference between two people of the same age/sex/body size is likely to be about the same as the difference between two random people.
So the message of the site is fine, but for practical purposes, ignore it. Instead, to get a baseline, take your temperature periodically when you are healthy.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 11:04 AM on October 18, 2023 [9 favorites]
So the message of the site is fine, but for practical purposes, ignore it. Instead, to get a baseline, take your temperature periodically when you are healthy.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 11:04 AM on October 18, 2023 [9 favorites]
I also took to taking my temperature a lot once the pandemic got rolling (97.8 seems to be normal for me), and it never ceases to amaze me that I can be in the middle of a ferocious hot flash, flames leaping out of my face and hands, and the thermometer still blandly says 97.8. Truly menopause is a bizarre thing.
posted by JanetLand at 11:10 AM on October 18, 2023 [22 favorites]
posted by JanetLand at 11:10 AM on October 18, 2023 [22 favorites]
This will only make it easier for aliens who have a slightly different body temperature to make it past one of the standard humanity checks.
It will force us to revert back to older, less reliable tests like asking who won the 1938 World Series.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 11:10 AM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
It will force us to revert back to older, less reliable tests like asking who won the 1938 World Series.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 11:10 AM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
This will only make it easier for aliens who have a slightly different body temperature to make it past one of the standard humanity checks.
Well, there's still one way to tell...
posted by xedrik at 11:22 AM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
Well, there's still one way to tell...
posted by xedrik at 11:22 AM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
Woohoo! I'm finally above average on something. (But still not "normal")
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 11:32 AM on October 18, 2023
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 11:32 AM on October 18, 2023
37 Centigrade is 98.6. It was probably rounded off. 36.6 is 97.9.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 11:42 AM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 11:42 AM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
My base temperature has always been around 97.7 for my entire life. If I'm at 98.6, I'm probably ill. And if I'm at 99.6, that's a fever for me, even if it doesn't qualify medically.
Same! It's really frustrating going to the doctor and they say, "Your temp is 99.4. That's slightly high, but we're not going to worry about it."
Well, I'm not worried but... that's a fever for me. Don't negate that information when you are making a diagnosis!
posted by a non mouse, a cow herd at 11:43 AM on October 18, 2023 [6 favorites]
Same! It's really frustrating going to the doctor and they say, "Your temp is 99.4. That's slightly high, but we're not going to worry about it."
Well, I'm not worried but... that's a fever for me. Don't negate that information when you are making a diagnosis!
posted by a non mouse, a cow herd at 11:43 AM on October 18, 2023 [6 favorites]
I am also a lizard person. 97 and a bit has always been my temp.
The correlation I'd be most interested in: Are folks with higher body temps, on average, more "active" people? Are they more likely to play sports or constantly exercise or be thinner or...?
posted by maxwelton at 12:07 PM on October 18, 2023
The correlation I'd be most interested in: Are folks with higher body temps, on average, more "active" people? Are they more likely to play sports or constantly exercise or be thinner or...?
posted by maxwelton at 12:07 PM on October 18, 2023
This is great! My only wish they had factored in the mode by which temperature is being taken, since that also impacts the result.
posted by evidenceofabsence at 12:09 PM on October 18, 2023
posted by evidenceofabsence at 12:09 PM on October 18, 2023
I'm hot blooded. Check it and see.
posted by kirkaracha at 12:40 PM on October 18, 2023 [11 favorites]
posted by kirkaracha at 12:40 PM on October 18, 2023 [11 favorites]
When I was like in the third grade, my pediatrician pulled out my chart during one visit and showed me a notation written diagonally across the top of a page in red that normal for me was 99.4.
Paradoxically, I’ve always been cold tolerant and heat intolerant.
posted by jamjam at 12:45 PM on October 18, 2023
Paradoxically, I’ve always been cold tolerant and heat intolerant.
posted by jamjam at 12:45 PM on October 18, 2023
Are folks with higher body temps, on average, more "active" people? Are they more likely to play sports or constantly exercise or be thinner or...?
No. My normal-for-me temperature has gone up (and is now probably actually 97.something) as I’ve gotten older and less active. Could be the older part, of course.
posted by eviemath at 12:49 PM on October 18, 2023
No. My normal-for-me temperature has gone up (and is now probably actually 97.something) as I’ve gotten older and less active. Could be the older part, of course.
posted by eviemath at 12:49 PM on October 18, 2023
My only wish they had factored in the mode by which temperature is being taken, since that also impacts the result.
It did?
"This tool allows you to determine whether your oral temperature is within the usual range for someone like you"
posted by a non mouse, a cow herd at 12:59 PM on October 18, 2023
It did?
"This tool allows you to determine whether your oral temperature is within the usual range for someone like you"
posted by a non mouse, a cow herd at 12:59 PM on October 18, 2023
97.6 for me, rock steady, which puts me a half-degree off in the tool.
What can I say? My physiology is all over the bell curve. Chocolate is hyper-caffeine to me, I can take virtually no anti-histamines without inducing adrenaline spikes, the one I can take (Zirtec), I take one 24 timed release pill every 3 days. My eyesight and teeth are top-notch, I and seem to put on muscle mass in my legs with minimal exercise.
Mrs. Chromecow says I'm the side-effects-may-include guy.
I think it's great that we're moving away from global averages. I assume that for truly useful diagnostics we're going to need to dive deeper into personal genomics, so that we are not just comparing apple to apples, but Honeycrisps to Honeycrisps, and Granny Smiths to Granny Smiths.
posted by chromecow at 1:06 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
What can I say? My physiology is all over the bell curve. Chocolate is hyper-caffeine to me, I can take virtually no anti-histamines without inducing adrenaline spikes, the one I can take (Zirtec), I take one 24 timed release pill every 3 days. My eyesight and teeth are top-notch, I and seem to put on muscle mass in my legs with minimal exercise.
Mrs. Chromecow says I'm the side-effects-may-include guy.
I think it's great that we're moving away from global averages. I assume that for truly useful diagnostics we're going to need to dive deeper into personal genomics, so that we are not just comparing apple to apples, but Honeycrisps to Honeycrisps, and Granny Smiths to Granny Smiths.
posted by chromecow at 1:06 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
Hello my fellow lizard people!
I hang out around 97.7-98.1
A fact I took great pains to explain to the school nurse in HS and the student wellness center in college.
Because, like my fellow reptile people, there's an adjustment for what Sick looks like vs Baseline.
Never thought to take my temperature during a hot flash, but that could be interesting data.
posted by SaharaRose at 1:37 PM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
I hang out around 97.7-98.1
A fact I took great pains to explain to the school nurse in HS and the student wellness center in college.
Because, like my fellow reptile people, there's an adjustment for what Sick looks like vs Baseline.
Never thought to take my temperature during a hot flash, but that could be interesting data.
posted by SaharaRose at 1:37 PM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
Could be the older part, of course.
Interesting how leaving everything else the same but increasing the age shows a steady drop in the graph beginning at age 42.
posted by klausman at 1:40 PM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
Interesting how leaving everything else the same but increasing the age shows a steady drop in the graph beginning at age 42.
posted by klausman at 1:40 PM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
I am typically over 99 which I think is why cats like me.
posted by tofu_crouton at 1:43 PM on October 18, 2023 [10 favorites]
posted by tofu_crouton at 1:43 PM on October 18, 2023 [10 favorites]
98.6F/37C is normal core (rectal) temperature. That's not how most people take their temp. Oral temperature, which is what this study looked at, is super variable -- when and what did you last eat or drink? how fast are you breathing?
This really bothers some med students, because they like everyone else grew up with the rote 98.6 number. Welcome to medicine, where patients don't read the textbook and sometimes the textbook is wrong! I tell them to mentally adjust by 1/2-1 degree, or if they really care, they are welcome to take a rectal.
Most of them don't care that much.
posted by basalganglia at 2:04 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
This really bothers some med students, because they like everyone else grew up with the rote 98.6 number. Welcome to medicine, where patients don't read the textbook and sometimes the textbook is wrong! I tell them to mentally adjust by 1/2-1 degree, or if they really care, they are welcome to take a rectal.
Most of them don't care that much.
posted by basalganglia at 2:04 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
I’ve also checked during hot flashes, and despite feeling willing to bet money I could grill a cheese directly on my sternum, it’s a steady 97.6-97.7 every time.
posted by mochapickle at 2:18 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by mochapickle at 2:18 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
Your temp is 99.4. That's slightly high, but we're not going to worry about it
My dad, an ICU nurse, has told me that the hospital doesn't even call it a real fever until it gets to 100 and won't do a thing (i.e. fever reducer) about it until it gets to 101 (for adults). Just an FYI on why the doc might not take your elevated tempurature seriously.
posted by LizBoBiz at 5:14 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
My dad, an ICU nurse, has told me that the hospital doesn't even call it a real fever until it gets to 100 and won't do a thing (i.e. fever reducer) about it until it gets to 101 (for adults). Just an FYI on why the doc might not take your elevated tempurature seriously.
posted by LizBoBiz at 5:14 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
My base temperature has always been around 97.7 for my entire life. If I'm at 98.6, I'm probably ill. And if I'm at 99.6, that's a fever for me, even if it doesn't qualify medically.
Same! It's really frustrating going to the doctor and they say, "Your temp is 99.4. That's slightly high, but we're not going to worry about it."
Well, I'm not worried but... that's a fever for me. Don't negate that information when you are making a diagnosis!
You are my people. I vary between 96.8 and 97.6, depending on whatever reason that day. As a kid, once when I was sick in grammer school I asked the nurse to call my mother. The nurse was pooh-poohing my complaints, and told my mother I "was only running a 99 degree temp". My mother told her that WAS a fever for me, and she would be right over.
When I gave birth to my first child, in active labor they wanted to throw a blanket on me, because my temp had dropped to 95.9. I told them if they did I'd kick it off, because I felt overheated!
The worst young doctor I ever had scoffed at me when I told him my normal body temp. He seemed incredulous that I would even know. Whipper snapper.
posted by annieb at 6:02 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]
My temperature is definitely low, low 97 degrees most of the time. Whenever it gets above 99 degrees or so I feel like crap, no matter who says what constitutes a fever. I'll refer my spouse to this thread the next time I don't feel like getting out of bed because my temperature has been clocked at 99.5 or greater. Of course she wouldn't want me to get out bed and I will anyway, as would she under the same circumstances. Why can't we just let ourselves be sick sometimes?
posted by mollweide at 6:25 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by mollweide at 6:25 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
Very nifty, though I'm disappointed that you can't select ages over 80. My mother and I have both always lower-than-98.6 temps, and she went to check her numbers and was vaguely insulted that she couldn't user her actual age (87) to yield an answer. Oops.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 7:09 PM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 7:09 PM on October 18, 2023 [3 favorites]
Saw the headline and thought this was about some old FM radio station that used old news clips to save money.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 10:03 PM on October 18, 2023
posted by JohnnyGunn at 10:03 PM on October 18, 2023
> Most of them don't care that much.
Having had a nasty diverticulitis episode (my first) a couple of years back I have become, er, intimately familiar with my core temperature variance:
* First thing in a morning it can be as low as 36.3°C (97.3°F)
* Mid afternoon it can be as high as 37.5°C (99.5°F)
* Later at night dropping back down to 36.9°C (98.4°F)
The temperature taking has been the only way to know for sure if I'm having an actual "go get antibiotics" episode as the other signals can come and go and are the normal things that happen due to having, well, a digestive system.
I had an episode in New Zealand a couple of months ago, after 40 hours of travel and not managing to stay hydrated enough. Combined with, what was I think, catching something on the plane(s) my core temperature hit 39.6°C (103.3°F) and stayed that way for four days. I had the other signs early so went to a drop in clinic on the second day, where they rated my fever at 3 on a scale of 0 to 7.
I assume "7" means you are literally on fire.
posted by lawrencium at 4:40 AM on October 19, 2023 [4 favorites]
Having had a nasty diverticulitis episode (my first) a couple of years back I have become, er, intimately familiar with my core temperature variance:
* First thing in a morning it can be as low as 36.3°C (97.3°F)
* Mid afternoon it can be as high as 37.5°C (99.5°F)
* Later at night dropping back down to 36.9°C (98.4°F)
The temperature taking has been the only way to know for sure if I'm having an actual "go get antibiotics" episode as the other signals can come and go and are the normal things that happen due to having, well, a digestive system.
I had an episode in New Zealand a couple of months ago, after 40 hours of travel and not managing to stay hydrated enough. Combined with, what was I think, catching something on the plane(s) my core temperature hit 39.6°C (103.3°F) and stayed that way for four days. I had the other signs early so went to a drop in clinic on the second day, where they rated my fever at 3 on a scale of 0 to 7.
I assume "7" means you are literally on fire.
posted by lawrencium at 4:40 AM on October 19, 2023 [4 favorites]
My regular resting temperature is about 35.4-36.0 Celsius and cats really like me.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 7:41 AM on October 19, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 7:41 AM on October 19, 2023 [2 favorites]
I came this close to a career in researching human body temperature. During my fellowship and early assistant professorship one of my colleagues was doing studies of temperature. He had the temperature-regulating part of a NASA spacesuit which was a tight-fitting mesh of tubes through which water could be circulated. (Fortunately, it was too small for me; no one ever said anything favorable about wearing it.)
I had a patient who had a wide-ranging but generally very low body temperature, averaging something like 93F but often going as low as 90F. We suspected he'd had a little stroke in his hypothalamus but MRIs were normal and his endocrine systems were fine. My colleague and I spent years trying to persuade him to get in the spacesuit and finally had him just about convinced when he suddenly died from a massive brain hemorrhage. He was a delightful man.
posted by neuron at 10:50 AM on October 21, 2023 [3 favorites]
I had a patient who had a wide-ranging but generally very low body temperature, averaging something like 93F but often going as low as 90F. We suspected he'd had a little stroke in his hypothalamus but MRIs were normal and his endocrine systems were fine. My colleague and I spent years trying to persuade him to get in the spacesuit and finally had him just about convinced when he suddenly died from a massive brain hemorrhage. He was a delightful man.
posted by neuron at 10:50 AM on October 21, 2023 [3 favorites]
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This recent NYT article is a good read: The Average Human Body Temperature Is Not 98.6 Degrees. Based on the same study as this Stanford visualization. Interesting bits: Goes on to speculate about reasons that average body temperature might actually be lower or if not, what else might explain the observations.
posted by Nelson at 9:46 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]