A sick person coughed directly in my face today. What are the odds I caught her cooties?
IMHO, it depends on what stage of infection she’s at and what pathogen she’s got. Some bugs are more infectious before the host has overt symptoms. Some recovered people continue to shed virus for weeks afterwards in various secretions. And it depends on the state of your own immune system
I wouldn’t panic if I were you. If you want to be paranoid, take a bunch of vitamin C, eat a balanced diet, moderate exercise, stay well hydrated, and get plenty of sleep.
Moderately good advice for even the non-paranoid.
I have a good reason to be paranoid, chest colds can really mess me up. Grr, damn inconsiderate people. How hard is it to turn your head and cough into your arm?
I took Airborn. Yeah, yeah, I know. It does have a good “cocktail” of germ fighting stuff, even though it tastes like horse piss. And it was created by a school teacher!
Ooo, may I ask a related question? I’m on the third day of a cold and want to go stay with friends for the weekend. Will I still be contagious tomorrow?
“Studies show that, if you are contract a cold, you can transmit it to others one or two days before your symptoms appear, and up to four or five days after first being exposed to the virus. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), colds are most contagious two to four days after original exposure, when there is plenty of the virus present in nasal secretions.”
If I started having symptoms on Tuesday, when was I first exposed?
Again, exact numbers would depend on exactly what bug you’ve got. The common cold isn’t caused by one specific pathogen. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of different viruses that cause runny nose, sore throat, and coughing. Even if we knew exactly what you’ve got, days of contagious-ness depend on you and your immune system.
Even then, most pathogens don’t travel by air very well. The vast majority of viruses die when they dry out, so to be infectious by air, they have to be traveling in a water droplet.
If you’re feeling well enough to go visit, then you’re likely fine. Go stay with your friends and just be obsessive about sanitizing your hands, not sharing utensils, that kind of thing.