School-age children and preteens average five or six illnesses annually; teens and adults may have two to three colds or illnesses per year.
Dry air — indoors or outside — can lower resistance to infection by viruses. So can allergies, lack of sleep, stress, not eating properly, or being around someone who smokes. And smokers are more likely to catch colds than people who don't smoke.
Minor illnesses, such as colds and intestinal disturbances, are common, especially in the early years: According to the 1980 National Health Interview Survey, children from age 1 to 3 years experience six to nine illnesses per year. From age 4 to 10 years, children develop, on average, four to six illnesses per year.
Back to school means a lot of things: new backpacks, new subjects to learn…and new germs. Frequent illness is a normal part of childhood – in fact, it's perfectly normal for your child to come down with respiratory and/or stomach bugs six to eight times each year!
The main reason your child is getting all those infections is that he or she is being exposed to new viruses all the time. The viruses are everywhere no matter how much you sanitize and clean.
Sometimes it might even feel like your kid gets sick every couple of weeks. From colds to infections and gastrointestinal illnesses, kids are exposed to a lot of viruses and bacteria, often for the very first time, which makes them vulnerable to catching everything.
Take some time to examine your lifestyle for clues, but if you find that you keep getting sick every month and there's no reason you can suss out, it could be a signal that something else is going on with your body, so don't hesitate to speak with a doctor.
In fact, a person who gets sick 1-2 times a year is likely to be more healthy than someone who can't remember the last time they got sick.
The good news is that, for most people who get colds frequently, “their immune systems may not be perfect, but they're unlikely to have a serious problem,” Murray said. In some cases, people who get sick frequently have an underlying condition affecting their immune systems.
At what ages is it common for kids to be sick frequently? Children under 7 years old have immature immune systems. Young children — especially those who may be attending school or daycare — are being exposed to new environments and new pathogens, or germs, that they haven't experienced before.
On average, you'll probably see between seven and eight infections a year. This number may be higher for children who are in child care or when they start school. It's also typical for kids to have symptoms lasting up to 14 days. And sometimes a cough can last up to six weeks.
Stress or burn-out can result in cold or flu-like symptoms causing your immune system to run on empty. Poor hygiene, i.e., lack of hand washing, sharing utensils, not using tissues, and disposing of them. Your environment – dry air, exposure to smoke, touching contaminated surfaces. Lack of sleep.
Keep in mind that if you seem to get sick often, you are not necessarily unhealthy. Instead, you may be more susceptible to illnesses than others.
The first thing doctors stress when it comes to viruses is there's a wide range of normal for how often an individual can get colds and other ailments, and still be considered healthy. On average, adults get two or three a year, according to the CDC, and children, even more.
But a sick day every month just before a weekend does suggest a pattern of undesirable behaviour. In the UK, there is no legal definition of how many sick days are too many sick days, and there is also no upper limit as to how many sick days an employee can take in a given year.
But if you're constantly catching colds – or have a cold that won't run its course – that's a clear sign your immune system is struggling to keep up.
Our immune systems are often said to have memory, meaning that if an individual has previously been exposed to an infectious bug, such as a virus, specialised immune cells that remember what it looks like will continue to circulate in the blood and body fluids, ready to trigger a rapid immune response should they ...
A lack of sleep, poor diet, anxiety, or stress can often cause a person to feel sick. These factors can make a person more susceptible to infection and illness. However, always feeling sick can also signify pregnancy or chronic illness. When sick, a person may experience stomach discomfort and vomiting.
It is possible to get sick regularly when the immune system is not functioning correctly. The reason for this is that the body is unable to fight off germs, such as bacteria, properly. If an infection occurs, it can take longer than usual to recover.