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Why Is the Common Cold so Common?

Alicia M Prater, PhD
Maeflowers
Published in
3 min readJan 4, 2025

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Photo by Vitolda Klein on Unsplash

We’ve all wondered it while trying so very hard to breathe through our mouths and not cough until we’re light-headed as we suffer through the annual scourge — why are colds so common? And why do we get them every winter?

First, I have to address the misconception — colds don’t happen only in the winter. You can catch a cold-causing virus any time of the year. It’s just that winter is when everyone is stuck indoors with each other. Because the viruses that cause the common cold are spread by human-to-human contact and highly contagious, winter provides ample opportunity for transmission. There has also been some research to indicate that certain respiratory viruses are more infectious in drier air. So running the humidifier does more than moisten your sinuses — it may also help stop the spread to family members.

Now, onto the culprits.

What is the common cold?

A cold is an upper respiratory illness (nose and throat) characterized by nasal congestion and sneezing, sometimes with sore throat, coughing, headache, and other uncomfortable symptoms. The symptoms are the result of an infection by a virus that causes inflammation in the membranes lining the nasal sinuses and throat. We refer to it as the “common cold” because it happens so frequently. The MayoClinic estimates that an average adult human…

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Maeflowers
Maeflowers

Published in Maeflowers

A personal publication to share stories on the myriad topics in the realm of health and medical science.

Alicia M Prater, PhD
Alicia M Prater, PhD

Written by Alicia M Prater, PhD

Scientific editor with Medical Science PhD, former researcher and lecturer, long-time writer and genealogist

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