How Long Does It Take For Cold Symptoms To Show?

Waking up with a cold can be the worst! Nothing makes a smear in your plans quicker than the irritating and draining symptoms a cold can bring. If you currently have a cold, we hope are prepared with some extra tissues and something warm and soothing in your thermos. WebMD reminds us that cold symptoms, which famously include coughing, fatigue, and runny nose usually last at least three days.

As haggard as we feel when we're battling the common cold, it may help to know that you're likely not the only one whose energy has been waning at half-mast. According to the CDC, on average adults are brought down by a cold two to three times a year. This means millions of Americans suffer from a cold on any given year. The high number of infections makes it hard to stay away from the viruses that cause colds. You can get infected easily if you shake hands with or hug an infected person, or if you even graze an infected doorknob or surface and then touch your eyes, nose, or mouth afterward.

Unless your partner or roommate is sneezing around the house all day in their pajamas and robe, it may be hard to identify where you may have contracted the virus. According to Health, once the virus has entered your system, it goes through an incubation period. During this time, it is unlikely symptoms of the common cold will present themselves. The incubation period can last anywhere between 10 hours to a week after being infected. It really depends on your own body, and which virus has infected you.

To avoid getting infected and infecting others, wash your hands like your health depends on it. A quick rinse under the tap just won't cut it. The CDC recommends washing your hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds. You should also avoid touching your face. And actively stay away from the sneezing person on the subway, and your coughing colleague.

The viruses that infect us with a common cold are here to stay and will likely never be wiped out. So when the time comes that you get saddled down with a cold, refrain from guessing who is to blame. As the incubation period is so varied, the energy-draining virus could have entered your system at any time from ten hours to a week ago.