Temperature

Cold

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• Strains of various infectious diseases, such as influenza and rhinoviruses, replicate faster in cold environments.
• Cold air is typically characterized by a dry air mass. This allows viruses to easily travel distances, up to 6 feet, in the air, making it easier to be inhaled.

Heat

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• Warm weather increases the movement of specific vectors, including fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, and rodents.
• Cholera, which is typically dominant during winter months, becomes more active when temperatures begin to rise and have a peak season during the warmest months of the year.
• The combination of heat and the rainy season causes an increase of cases of salmonella.