I have a cold and don’t want to infect my family and friends. How long am I considered contagious?
As a general rule, adults with a cold will be able to infect other people one day before symptoms appear, and up to five days or so after becoming sick. Infants and children are able to transmit these viral infections for seven days or longer. The precise number of days for transmission can vary from person to person. Those in poor health tend to get infected more easily. Children are also more likely to catch (and transmit) colds.
Cold viruses, abundant in nasal and throat secretions, are mainly transmitted via hands. When you are sick and blow your nose, touch your face, or wipe your eyes, the virus transfers to your hands, and then to whatever or whomever you touch. If you contaminate a telephone, the next person who uses it may catch your cold. To avoid spreading or catching a cold, the most important precaution is to wash your hands often and well. Hand sanitizers are a good option when you’re not near a sink.
Coughing and sneezing can also spread the virus, of course. If you don’t have a tissue, instead of sneezing or coughing into your hand, do it into your arm or shoulder, thus avoiding contaminating your hand.
If you think you are getting sick, limit your contacts. Don’t hug and kiss. If you’re around someone who is sick, stay at least six feet away—cold viruses can’t be propelled much farther than that. Don’t share drinking glasses, utensils, phones, or towels.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza virus, and SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19) can also cause cold symptoms. RSV is spread much like rhinoviruses and some coronaviruses. Influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2 are most likely to be spread via the air. But even when the viruses don’t travel exactly the same way as cold viruses, taking many of the same precautions noted above will also help keep you from transmitting or catching these illnesses.
