Washington DC : A new study has revealed that a simple self-rating of health accurately predicts susceptibility to the common cold in healthy adults aged 18-55 years, reports ANI.
Lead researcher Sheldon Cohen of the Carnegie Mellon University wanted to examine whether self-rated health predicted effective immune response in younger adults selected for their good health and whether this association was dependent on health practices and socio-emotional factors.
In the study, 360 healthy adults with an average age of 33 years assessed their health as excellent, very good, good, fair or poor. They were subsequently exposed to a virus that causes the common cold and monitored for five days for the development of illness. About one-third of the participants developed colds.
The investigators found that those who rated their health as very good, good or fair were more .