Colds: Are kids more vulnerable?

On average, an adult's cold lasts five to seven days, while a child's cold lasts 10 days. Cold symptoms lasting two weeks or more in a child suggest that an ear infection, a sinus infection or pneumonia has complicated the initial viral infection. The cold symptom most common in adults is nasal congestion. Children are more likely to have multiple signs and symptoms, including a sore throat, cough, irritability, difficulty sleeping and decreased appetite.

Children under the age of 6 typically catch six to eight colds a year. Adults, on the other hand, average only two to four colds a year. Children in child care appear to be more exposed to these infections than do those cared for at home. When they enter grade school, however, the kids who have been in child care seem to catch fewer colds than do the children who had been cared for at home.

If your child has a cold, it's best for him or her to stay at home. Fever, profuse nasal drainage or persistent coughing usually warrants a sick day, even if your child seems fine otherwise. Other parents will appreciate your efforts to limit the spread of the cold.

This advice also holds true in the workplace. If you're experiencing cold symptoms, stay home. The cold you pass on to your co-worker could easily end up infecting his or her entire family.

People are most contagious during the first two or three days of a cold, and usually aren't contagious after a week.

People with colds generally have no detectable viral particles in their saliva. Nasal secretions carry the most viral particles, so contact with the mucus released when you sneeze or blow your nose spreads the infection.

Cold viruses can survive on your hands for as long as two hours. Washing your hands regularly with soap and water is the best way to reduce the spread of colds.

Children commonly have a fever when they have a cold, but adults rarely do.

It's best to go by how your child acts rather than by any particular temperature. If your child has a fever but is responsive, is drinking plenty of fluids and wants to play, there's probably no cause for alarm and no need for medication. Low-grade fevers under 100.4 F typically need no treatment because the increase in temperature is one of the body's defense mechanisms against respiratory viruses.

If you give your child medicine for fever, choose acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) or ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) — not aspirin. Aspirin in children has been associated with Reye's syndrome, a serious liver condition that can lead to coma and death.

Multiple studies show no improvement in cold symptoms when children take antihistamines, decongestants or cough suppressants. Some of these medications do make children sleepy. This could be seen as a benefit if cold signs and symptoms — such as a bad cough — have been keeping the child awake.

Antibiotics, such as penicillin, treat infections caused by bacteria, not by viruses. The common cold is a viral infection. It should not be treated with antibiotics. They won't help.