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Is time of the year a factor on the risk of catching a common cold?

I've heard this from my father and I feel like I've experienced it personally, but I can't tell whether or not it's confirmation bias.

The idea is that when the weather starts to change (mid-fall or mid-spring), you're more likely to get a common cold. Is there any science to back this up?

Note - I'm not simply asking if cold weather makes you sick, the idea is that the fact that the weather is changing is what makes you sick.

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MikeASchneider
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    [Welcome to Skeptics](http://meta.skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/1505/welcome-to-new-users)! It would be good to [get a reference](http://meta.skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/882/what-are-the-attributes-of-a-good-question/883#883) for notability - at least in part to clarify the claim. For example, weather changes can affect pollen levels that trigger asthma and hayfever. Is that included in the claim or not? – Oddthinking Oct 19 '12 at 02:15
  • @Oddthinking - Indeed, I've heard the same thing, but usually followed by the explanation that it's not the changes in weather per se that make you more likely to get sick, but the environment being more favorable to germs being spread by being able to sit around on surfaces longer. – rjzii Oct 19 '12 at 02:37
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    @RobZ: If the claim is about temperatures and the common-cold, we already have [a duplicate](http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/88/cold-and-catching-colds-temperature-and-disease). If the claim is about season change and the common cold, we alread have [a duplicate](http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/4963/is-time-of-the-year-a-factor-on-the-risk-of-catching-a-common-cold). Hence the need to narrow down the claim, to see if it is novel. – Oddthinking Oct 19 '12 at 02:47
  • Closing as a dupe as the body of the question is specifically about seasons. If the intent was different, the OP should correct the question and make it point to some notability source as per @Oddthinking's request – Sklivvz Oct 19 '12 at 06:43
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    I don't think it's the same as asking about sessions. If it's one day 10C° and the next day 30C° that change in temperature can plausibly have an effect on the body. The body has to spend resources on adapting to a different temperature. There are locations on earth that have more variance in temperature and others that have less. If weather changes are bad I might move to a location with less variance. – Christian Oct 19 '12 at 11:36

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