Researchers have uncovered that a recent cold might actually help protect against
Not a Reason to Catch a Cold on Purpose
“This doesn’t mean people should intentionally try to catch a cold,” said Camille Moore, PhD and lead author of the study at National Jewish Health. “But understanding how one virus can affect the body’s response to another could help us develop new prevention strategies, especially for vulnerable populations.”
The research builds on earlier findings from the HEROS study showing that children are six times less likely than adults to develop symptomatic COVID. The new data highlights the role that both age-related immune differences and recent viral exposures may play in that protection.
Reference: “The Common Cold Is Associated With Protection From SARS-CoV-2 Infections” by Camille M Moore, Elizabeth A Secor, Jamie L Everman, Ana Fairbanks-Mahnke, Nathan Jackson, Elmar Pruesse, Katrina Diener, Andrew Morin, Samuel J Arbes, Leonard B Bacharier, Casper G Bendixsen, Agustin Calatroni, William D Dupont, Glenn T Furuta, Tebeb Gebretsadik, Rebecca S Gruchalla, Ruchi S Gupta, Gurjit K Khurana Hershey, Meyer Kattan, Andrew H Liu, Stephanie J Lussier, Liza Bronner Murrison, Mari Numata, George T O’Connor, Katherine Rivera-Spoljaric, Wanda Phipatanakul, Marc E Rothenberg, Christine M Seroogy, Edward M Zoratti, Sharon Castina, Daniel J Jackson, Carlos A Camargo, Christine C Johnson, Rachel Ethridge, Sima Ramratnam, Lia Stelzig, Stephen J Teach, Alkis G Togias, Patricia C Fulkerson, Tina V Hartert, Max A Seibold and on behalf of the HEROS study team, 11 August 2025, The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiaf374
National Jewish Health researchers conducted the study in collaboration with partners from 12 cities across the United States.
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