You’re Most Likely To Catch A Cold In These Cities

Cold and flu season is well underway throughout the United States, and many folks have already felt the impact of these nasty little viruses.

Common sense would lead you to believe that the bigger and busier the city, the more likely you are to catch a cold.

Digging deeper into the issue has revealed which cities in the United States are most likely to spread cold viruses.

Influenza Study

In hopes of shedding some light on where colds are most easily spread, Marian University conducted a study looking into the issue.

They studied 15 key factors that directly or indirectly impacted susceptibility to illness.

These factors range from demographic data, such as young children prone to spreading viruses, to environmental conditions like humidity levels.

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Factors Contributing to Cold Susceptibility

You won't be terribly surprised to find out that cities with higher population density did tend to facilitate more frequent virus transmission than less crowded environments.

I found this a little bit interesting, but drier areas with less precipitation and lower humidity levels tended to cause infections to spread more rapidly.

Temperature also played a key factor and was commonly associated with higher incidences of catching a cold.

A few other factors that were explored include air quality, access to nutritious foods, physical activity rates, and even sunshine.

Cities Most Likely to Spread the Cold

1. Bakersfield, CA (Score: 71.7)
2. McAllen, TX (Score: 70.9)
3. El Paso, TX (Score: 69.7)
4. Philadelphia, PA (Score: 69.2)
5. Las Vegas, NV (Score: 64.8)

Cities Least Likely to Catch a Cold

1. Wilmington, NC (Score: 28.2)
2. Madison, WI (Score: 33.7)
3. Honolulu, HI (Score: 36.5)
4. Raleigh, NC (Score: 37.0)
5. San Jose, CA (Score: 37.1)

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