Epidemiology
The common cold is the most common human disease,[80] and affects people all over the globe.[25] Adults typically have two to five infections annually[4][5] and children may have six to ten colds a year (and up to twelve colds a year for school children).[51] Rates of symptomatic infections increase in the elderly due to declining immunity.[33]
Native Americans and Inuit are more likely to be infected with colds and develop complications such as otitis media than Caucasians.[20] This may be explained by issues such as poverty and overcrowding rather than by ethnicity.[20]