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Is It A Cold Or Allergies

What Is A Summer Cold

Is It a Cold or Allergies?

A summer cold is quite literally a cold that you catch in the summer. There is no difference between a summer cold, winter cold, spring cold, or fall cold, besides the time of year you become ill.

A cold in general is caused by the Rhinovirus, affecting each adult 2-3 times a year on average. . That means U.S. adults experience an accumulative of 627 million colds annually.

Even though a common cold iscommon, it doesnt make it any more pleasant to experience.

Is It A Summer Cold Or Allergies

Is it a summer cold or allergies? No one wants to suffer from a summer cold or allergies, as both are unwelcome visitors in our lives. The symptoms of both conditions hang out on a blurry line, which doesnt make this any easier. I have the information you need to decide if you are a victim of a cold, allergies, or both.

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Cold Symptoms And A Fever Of More Than 102 F May Be Signs That You Have The Flu

Flu symptoms are similar to those of a cold , but also can include a fever of more than 102 F, chills, and nausea. To treat flu, drink fluids and get plenty of rest to help your body fight the infection. People at high risk for complications from the flu should call their doctor about antiviral medicine.

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Home Remedies For Allergy And Cold Symptoms

When you start to feel bad, some easy home cures can help. Get some rest as a first step. If you feel exhausted, respect your bodys signals and slow down exhaustion is a symptom of allergies and colds. In addition, gargle with warm water with salt to ease the discomfort of scratchy or irritated throats and congested nasal passages.

You can also utilize a neti pot to soothe your clogged nose. You can buy a neti pot at any local drugstore. It usually comes with packs of salt mixed with warm, clean water to make a solution that you flush into your nasal passages.

To soothe your sore throat, you can use a mixture of the half to a full teaspoon of salt in 8 ounces of warm and clean water. Like you would with mouthwash, gargle for a few seconds. Then spit it out and do it again until there is no more solution. You may repeatedly do this daily until your sore throat is gone.

What Can I Do On My Own To Relieve Cold Or Allergy Symptoms

Cold vs. Allergies in Kids: 12 Ways to Tell the Difference

â Drink plenty fluids to thin out mucus

â Use saline nasal sprays or nasal rinses, like a neti pot

â Gargle with saltwater to relieve a sore throat

â Use a cool-mist humidifierâ

Still not sure what you’re suffering from? Check out our quiz, Is it a Cold or Allergies?

All of our allergy experts at Aspire Allergy & Sinus are ready to work with you and your family to help you find the best solution for your allergy symptoms. Request an appointment to come see us today!

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Allergies Rarely Cause Sore Throats Or Body Aches

The only ache you may feel with allergies is a headache from all that congestion. Allergies can cause a sore throat if theres enough irritation from post-nasal drip and coughing, but if youre experiencing a sore throat or mild body aches, theyre more likely a sign of a bad cold.

Can allergies cause chills? No. If you have chills, its more likely you have a cold, the flu or another infection .

Is It A Cold Sinus Infection Or Allergies How To Tell The Difference

If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please call 911 or seek care at an emergency room.

It can be tough to tell the difference between a cold, a bacterial sinus infection and allergies. In fact, thats probably one of the questions people ask doctors most frequently in this country. Theres a lot of confusion about what the signs are for these conditionsfrom patients and their doctors alike.

Recognizing the variations between these three conditions is important. The treatment strategies for a cold are unlike those for a bacterial sinus infection. And treatment for allergies is different still than treatment for the other two.

Lets go through the symptoms that people often are confused about, as well as the process of deciding which condition a patient may have and what we need to do about it.

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How To Treat A Cold

Because a cold is a virus, theres not much you can do to treat it, other than rest and drink plenty of fluids.

Some ways to treat a cold include drinking plenty of fluids, taking over-the-counter pain relievers, such as Tylenol or Advil, nasal sprays, cough syrups and decongestants, Dr. Hur says.

Over-the-counter medicines and saltwater sprays wont cure a cold, but they may help relieve symptoms.

If your symptoms get worse, dont wait to see a doctor, as you may have a more serious condition. If your throat or lips swell, you experience shortness of breath or have difficulty breathing, seek medical help right away.

How To Tell The Difference

Is It Allergies or a Cold?

Asking certain questions can help someone determine whether symptoms are due to an allergy or a cold:

  • How quickly did symptoms appear? Symptoms tend to come on gradually over a day or two when a cold is the cause. When symptoms come on suddenly out of nowhere, they are more likely to be caused by an allergy.
  • How long have symptoms been present? Symptoms of a cold tend to taper off after a week or two. Allergy symptoms may last while exposure to the triggering allergen is still in the air.
  • Do symptoms occur at predictable times? If symptoms tend to occur at the same time every year, they can be due to seasonal allergies.
  • Do symptoms include itchy or watery eyes or eczema? Certain symptoms tend to occur more frequently with allergies as opposed to colds.

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Signs And Symptoms Of A Cold

Theres a reason its called the common cold. More than 3 million people catch a cold every year in the United States adults are likely to have a cold two to three times every year.

A cold is caused by a virus. When someone with a cold sneezes or coughs, tiny virus droplets are spread into the air and land on surfaces. You can pick up the cold germs when you touch an infected area and then touch your face, eyes or mouth.

Telltale signs of a cold include:

Colds only last about seven to 10 days and cant be treated by medicine, though certain remedies can help relieve symptoms. A cold can sometimes turn into a more serious infection, which can be treated with an antibiotic. Contact your primary care provider if your cold lasts longer than 10 days or if you experience a sudden worsening of symptoms.

Cold Vs Allergies: Treatment

Because colds are caused by viruses and allergies are caused by exposure to an allergen, there are different treatments that are appropriate for each condition.

Because some symptoms of colds and allergies overlap, medications with the same active ingredients are sometimes helpful in the treatment of each condition.

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How Can I Prevent Colds And Allergies

To avoid catching a virus and spreading colds:

  • Wash your hands frequently or use hand sanitizer.
  • Cover your coughs and sneezes.
  • Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth, which are the areas of your body most vulnerable to germs.

To avoid seasonal allergies:

  • Try to limit your contact with the allergens you react to.
  • If your allergies bother you a lot, immunotherapy may help reduce or even completely prevent irritating symptoms.

When Did You Begin To Feel Unwell

Is it an allergy or a cold?

If you remember being around someone who had an upper respiratory infection a few days before you started feeling ill, you may have caught a viral infection. Viruses are spread by contact with sneezes, coughs, and contaminated surfaces such as door handles. Allergies, on the other hand, can begin immediately after coming in contact with triggers such as pollen. If you think you might be experiencing a seasonal allergy, check the pollen count in your area if levels are high, allergies may be the culprit.

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Allergies Rarely Induce Throat Or Body Pain

Allergies rarely cause any severe pain, except for a possible headache due to sinus congestion. Your allergies can result in sore throat only if it is caused by coughing and post-nasal drip. But if youre experiencing sore throat and body aches simultaneously, its an indication that you might have a cold or flu.

Allergy Symptoms Typically Last Longer And Have A Pattern

If you have allergies, the symptoms will usually flare up at specific times of the year when allergens to which you are susceptible are prevalent. For instance, if you have an allergy to tree pollen, your allergy symptoms will manifest in early spring. This also indicates that your allergy symptoms may last for several days or weeks until the season ends.

On the other hand, viruses that cause the common cold are present throughout the year, so its possible to acquire a cold at any moment. However, the likelihood of becoming sick is highest during the winter season. And compared to allergies, the average duration of a cold is one week.

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How Do I Order At

At-home test kits can be ordered and shipped for free online at covid.gov/tests, and local testing locations can be found through the Ohio Department of Health website at coronavirus.ohio.gov/testing-and-treatment.

If a test is negative but your symptoms persist, you should continue to isolate and test over the next few days, said Dr. Mark Herbert, infectious disease specialist at Mount Carmel Medical Group.

“If you know that there are people around you that seem sick then you should avoid settings,” Herbert said. “Similarly, if you are feeling sick, you should not go around other people until you’re feeling better or you know for sure that you don’t have COVID.”

How To Tell If You Have The Cold Or Allergies

Is It a Common Cold or Allergies?
  • First, consider the symptoms. Allergies cause itchy eyes and nose whereas the common cold comes with headaches and body aches.
  • Keep track of how long your symptoms last. The common cold typically lasts 7-10 days whereas allergies can last for much longer.
  • Pay attention to the time of year when you feel symptoms. If your sniffles hit in wintertime, chances are you have a common cold, not allergies.

There’s a lot of overlap between cold and allergy symptoms, and it’s not always easy to tell what’s causing your sniffles.

“But there are some clues,” says David Cutler, a family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center.

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If Allergy Medicine Doesnt Work Is It A Cold

If prescribed or recommended medicine isnt working, there may be a few explanations.

  • Allergy medicine will not treat a cold . So, if youve started taking allergy medication without a proper diagnosis, you may just have a cold
  • If youve had a professional diagnosis, it could be that you need to try another medicine13. If this is the case, speak to your doctor and they may suggest immunotherapy or another treatment

Also, make sure youre using allergy medications correctly such as pointing nasal sprays the right way and following the directions on any packaging. You could have your local pharmacist help with drug administration if you are unsure how to use a product.

You Notice A Seasonal Pattern

If you’re the type of person who knows they get the same cold every March, it might be time to reconsider what the culprit actually is. “If you notice it’s seasonal like clockwork, and every spring or fall you get these symptoms, it might be allergy-related,” Dr. Parikh said.

That holds true even if your seasonal symptoms occur earlier than you might think of as allergy season, Dr. Rosenstreich said. “In the Northeast, for example, most people are not aware of the fact that the trees begin to pollinate even when there’s still snow on the ground. Depending on the weather, people can have allergy symptoms in February.”

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Could It Be A Cold Or Allergies

Like flu and COVID-19, colds are also caused by viruses and can be passed to others.

Symptoms of a cold tend to be mild. You may have a runny nose, cough, congestion, and sore throat. But you wont usually have the aches and fever that are common with COVID-19 and flu. Often, youll feel better in a couple of days.

Theres no cure for the common cold. Typical treatments include rest, fluids, and over-the-counter medicines. Some complementary treatments may help with cold symptoms, too. Taking honey may help with nighttime cough for children over 1 year old. Rinsing your nose and sinuses can help with congestion. You can use a neti pot or other nasal rinsing device. Be sure to only use water thats been properly processed, such as distilled or boiled water, not tap water. Nasal rinses can bring relief for both cold and allergies.

Allergies can cause a runny nose and sneezing. But theyre not contagious. If your eyes, nose, or ears itch, that also could be an allergy.

Exposure to things like dust, pets, and tree or grass pollen can trigger allergies, which are caused by the immune systemThe system that protects your body from invading viruses, bacteria, and other microscopic threats. overreacting.

Allergy symptoms tend to stop when youre no longer exposed to the cause. Unless you have asthma, allergies typically do not cause breathing problems. Allergies can be treated with drugs like antihistamines, decongestants, and nasal steroids.

Get To The Bottom Of Whats Causing Your Congestion

Is It Allergies or a Cold?

It can be tough to figure out whats causing your symptoms. If youre experiencing symptoms related to the common cold or allergies, and theyre interfering with your daily life or you have a fever, call your primary care provider or visit an AdventHealth Centra Care urgent care location near you. A quick exam or allergy test can give you an accurate diagnosis and answers so you can get one the road to recovery.

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Common Symptoms Of Colds Sinus Infections And Allergies

Many people have been told that the following symptoms are signs of a bacterial sinus infection as opposed to a cold:

  • Facial pain and headache
  • Discolored mucus or sinus drainage
  • Severe nasal congestion

But in reality, these symptoms dont help us distinguish one condition from the other, at least in the first week to 10 days. Generally speaking, all of the classic symptoms of a sinus infection can be present in a cold.

If youve had these symptoms for fewer than seven to 10 days, theyre almost certainly signs of a cold virus. When people have these symptoms for more than seven to 10 days without improvement, thats when we start thinking it might be a bacterial sinus infection. It is also very unusual for a cold, or other viral upper respiratory illness, to worsen after five days. This suggests a transition to a bacterial process. This is important because antibiotics should only be used when a bacterial process is suspected.

The symptoms of allergies dont normally include fever or a lot of discolored sinus drainage. Classic allergy symptoms may include:

  • Scratchy or low-grade sore throat

Some of these are similar to cold or sinus symptoms. The difference is that allergy symptoms dont follow the course of a cold, which runs through its symptoms as the cold progresses. Allergy symptoms are more consistent than cold symptoms. There is often a pattern to the symptoms related to a change in the indoor or outdoor environment .

Colds Dont Tend To Linger

A cold is generally more severe the first week and then will start to improve after 10 days. If you continue to get sick, you may be suffering from an allergy rather than a cold or viral infection.

With allergies, your symptoms may flare up at certain times throughout the year or when exposed to an allergen and can last for several weeks until that particular allergen has ended or been removed.

Its important to note that allergies arent always confined to the spring and summer and colds to fall and winter, Dr. Pero said. Although we do see an increased frequency of cold viruses in the fall and winter months, colds and viruses can occur year-round.

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Are You Treating Multiple Symptoms

For a cold, get extra rest and drink plenty of fluids, including water, tea, or soup with lots of broth. For allergies, it can help to shower and change your clothes often because allergens cling to skin, hair, and clothing. For both colds and allergies, over-the-counter antihistamines, decongestants, and pain relievers may help you feel better, although they wont make a cold go away any faster. And no matter what ails you, avoid medications that treat multiple symptoms, especially if you dont have some of the symptoms the medication is meant to treat.

If home treatments arent working and you still dont feel well, connect with our Consulting Nurse Service.

How To Treat Allergies And A Cold

Is It Allergies or a Cold?

Allergies are caused by your body’s immune system responding to a commonplace trigger, like pollen or cat dander. To fight off the trigger, your immune system releases chemicals called histamines that cause an allergic reaction.

To treat allergies, you’ll need to either avoid the trigger altogether or take medications, like antihistamines, to counteract your immune system’s response. Antihistamines help by blocking the effect of histamines, hence the term antihistamine. This, in turn, helps relieve your symptoms.

“Some people need to stay on antihistamines long term if they have year-round allergies,” Arthur adds.

A cold is caused by a virus. There’s no cure that can treat the virus, but there are medications that can relieve your symptoms. Acetaminophen and ibuprofen can help alleviate pain and reduce your fever, while decongestants will reduce congestion. Get rest and drink a lot of fluids.

Then there’s always a possibility you’ll be struck with allergies and the cold simultaneously. So if your symptoms aren’t easing, and you’re just not sure if it’s a cold, allergies, or both, make an appointment with your doctor.

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