2007-02-05 06:48:39 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ Infectious Diseases
There are over 2000 rhino viruses. Once you've had one virus, you are immune from that virus. But you can still catch the other 1,999.
That's why is so hard to come up with a vaccine.
2007-02-05 06:52:25 · answer #1 · answered by chieromancer 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We have immunity to a cold for about 3 months, so we can't catch the same one again for 3 mo.
We can catch a cold caused by a different virus though. There are hundreds of viruses that cause colds.
2007-02-05 14:52:58 · answer #2 · answered by diannegoodwin@sbcglobal.net 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What usually happens is, as you body fights off a cold it produces antibodies (germ fighters) in large quantities, once you kick the cold you still have a large number of the antibodies in your system, which make catching the same cold again difficult, at least for a short period of time. If you do get sick again immediately after it is often because you were never completely over it.
2007-02-05 14:55:18 · answer #3 · answered by MTRO 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because most of the time, when you catch a cold, the process of getting better involves developing anti-bodies in your blood to fight the germs.
Those anti-bodies remain even once the cold has gone so if you get re-infected your body is already prepared to fight the new infection.
However, there are so many mutations of each virus that the chances are you wont get the exact same germ twice.
2007-02-05 14:54:05 · answer #4 · answered by BOB 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oh, yea, the Round-Robin-Cold.
You (and your germy friends -- no offense) can get a cold again. But it won't be the same virus. Your immunity is to the one germ of the moment, not to the thousands of other infections out there.
At this moment my friend has bugs she's been trading with her husband and three friends.
So far, WHEW!, I've been immune to it all.
.
2007-02-05 15:03:29 · answer #5 · answered by Icteridae 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because of temporary active immunity. Although you may not be affected by the specific rhinovirus that you gave to everyone else, you can acquire a different one. The virus first attaches itself to the lining of the nasal passages and spreads from there.
2007-02-05 15:13:27 · answer #6 · answered by TweetyBird 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can only catch the same virus one time then you become immune to it.
2007-02-05 14:53:20 · answer #7 · answered by Jiselley 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can, and I have.
2007-02-05 14:51:19 · answer #8 · answered by Paige 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋