The coronavirus pandemic has a lot of people taking their temperature more than they normally would. With that said, many people question what is the actual normal body temperature. We have been told through the years that the standard body temperature is 98.6.

According to TIME, it was 1871 when a German doctor set 98.6 as the normal body temperature. The doctor based that on millions of readings from 25,000 Germain patients taken by sticking thermometers under their arms. When doctors in the U.S. repeated the experiment, they came up with the same number so the U.S. decided to go with that. Stanford University has given us more recent research and that research suggests that it should be around 97.5. The research says that is based on humans being cooler now due to multiple factors like better hygiene and medical care.

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In a recent story from BR Proud, Dr. Joan Thode of Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health Physicians Roseville Pediatrics says it’s not uncommon for us to hear parents say that their kid is a 97 so a 99 is a fever for them. But, Thode says that far more research needs to be done in order to change the medical definition of a fever which is 100.4 for infants and 100.8 for kids and adults. Thode also says that you should focus on how your child is feeling instead of the number on the thermometer. If they aren’t feeling well, but don’t have a temperature, you should keep them home because they could be contagious without running a fever.

To read more on the Stanford study, click here.

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