“I once met a farmer who claimed that, at the start of winter, he used to rub his chest and back with goose grease and then have his warmer clothes sewn onto him for the duration of winter. He said he never got a cold - although that’s probably because no one could go near him because of the stench.”

So recalls Ronald Eccles, an emeritus professor at Cardiff University who headed up its Common Cold Centre for nearly 30 years between 1988 and 2017. During that time he heard an array of whacky “cures” for the common cold - though none of them has ever topped the goose fat farmer.

“Rubbing Vaseline around and inside the nostril to trap the viruses as they are breathed in” is another of his favourite cold-preventing myths, while “an ancient remedy for colds was to kiss the hairy muzzle of a mouse”. This too, he says, is inadvisable. 

Read more:

• Why your cold tells you little about Covid transmission

• Coronavirus: The infection hotspots in schools revealed

• What happens if a teacher tests positive for Covid-19?

For teachers, the winter season is always high risk. Just as you are never more than six feet from a rat in London, you are probably never more than six feet from a seasonal virus in school. This year, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic adds an additional layer of worry for anyone who does develop a cough.  

You might think that the measures we are all taking to help stop the spread of Covid-19 might mean we are less likely to catch a cold this year (relentless hand washing, face masks and so on). But as Shetal Arjan-odedra, a former virologist at King’s College London who is now training to be a teacher, explained in Tes earlier this month: “[Colds] are more resistant to handwashing and disinfection.”

So if kissing a mouse or layering on the goose fat isn’t going to keep us safe, what can teachers do to maximise their chances of staying fit? 

How do you prevent a cold?

First, we would recommend that you get your medical advice from a medical professional. The NHS website, for example, details a range of measures we can all take to help us stay well: washing hands with warm water and soap; not sharing towels or cups with someone who has a cold; remembering not to touch your face.

But what about school-specific measures? Teachers have to spend long periods out in the cold, wind, rain and snow. Welcoming children to school, monitoring the playground or teaching PE all involve exposure to the elements. Does Professor Eccles have any advice here?

“Keep moving,” he says. “It will keep you fit and warm you up. Otherwise, ask the head to invest in outdoor heaters around the schoolyard.”  

Of course, many schools struggle to keep the inside warm never mind the outside. What about in cold classrooms. Any tips here?

“Wear a scarf to keep the nose warm, as viruses like a cold nose,” Eccles explains. “Goggles would also be good protection against infection as the eye is an entrance to the nose for colds and other viruses via the tear duct.”

Do vitamin supplements work?

And what of the other common deterrents. Is it worth loading up on vitamin C? And if so, what’s best - effervescent tablets or eating your body weight in oranges? What about warm drinks like lemon and honey? And is it true you should feed a cold? 

“Teachers in the USA swear by taking a cold remedy called Airborne - it was invented by a teacher, and it contains a huge mix of vitamins and minerals,” Eccles says. “But the remedy has never been tested in trials, and there is no evidence that it works. It just shows we are all desperate to take something to prevent colds and belief is more powerful than medical science.”

He continues: “Hot tasty drinks have been shown in trials to help alleviate all symptoms of colds, especially sore throat and cough, and the big advantage is that they are cheap, safe and you can take them as often as you wish. Try a hot blackcurrant cordial or homemade honey and lemon.”

There are other tips too. “Spicy foods will also help alleviate sore throat and cough, so try a hot curry, but avoid the pints of lager as alcohol makes nasal congestion much worse.”

Garlic, meanwhile, is often put forward as a good protector against colds “because of its antiviral activity”. 

As an added bonus, “if you load up with lots of powerful smelling garlic it will keep all colleagues and pupils at a distance and prevent infection,” Eccles adds.

Chris Parr is a freelance journalist