Star Tribune
by Connie Nelson

In Minnesota, we have road construction season (sometimes known as spring and summer) and cold and flu season (aka fall and winter). But how much do we really know about the common cold? It’s common, for one thing. Most adults get two to three colds a year. And while they’re usually just a nuisance for most of us, they can be serious for the very young, the very old and people with compromised immune systems. They also cost the U.S. economy an estimated $40 billion a year, studies indicate. We talked to Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, an infectious-disease specialist with Mayo Clinic in Rochester, about the relationship between cold (weather) and a cold, if zinc can help, when to see a doctor and if there’s a cold vaccine on the way.

Reach: The Star Tribune Sunday circulation is 518,745 copies and weekday circulation is 300,277. The Star Tribune is the state’s largest newspaper and ranks 16th nationally in circulation.

Context:  Nipunie Rajapakse, M.D. is a Mayo Clinic Infectious Diseases specialist.

Contact:  Kelley Luckstein

Tags: common cold, Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, infectious disease specialist, Star Tribune, Uncategorized