It is possible to catch a cold through your eyes, because the eye ducts are located closely to the nasal cavity and throat. When a person with a cold coughs or sneezes, particles of infected mucus make their way into the air and can land on surfaces that are commonly touched, such as doorknobs or counter tops. If your hand touches an infected surface and then your eyes, the virus is able to make its way through the eye ducts and down into the nasal cavity and throat, where it can cause an infection that results in a cold.
More about the common cold:
- Children are infected with an average of seven to eight colds per year, and adults typically average two to three. There are an estimated 1 billion colds per year in the US.
- It takes only 24 hours for one cold virus to produce 16 million offspring.
- A sneeze can travel as fast as 15 feet (4.5 m) per second, while a breath moves air at 4.5 feet (1.4 m) per second. Cold germs can spread to people more than 6 feet (1.8 m) away.
