COLD, COMMON

A viral upper respiratory tract infection. A contagious illness caused by a number of different types of viruses. Because of the great number of viruses that can cause a cold, the body never builds up resistance (immune) against all of them. For this reason, colds are a frequent and recurring problem. In fact, preschool children average 9 colds a year; those in kindergarten, 12 colds a year; and adolescents and adults, 7 colds per year. Going out into the cold weather has no effect on the spread of a cold. Antibiotics do not help the common cold.