Cold Symptoms or Flu Symptoms?
Do you have cold symptoms or flu symptoms? Knowing if you have a flu virus or a cold virus, makes a big difference in how you treat it. It also makes a huge difference in how sick you may become. Are you able to tell the difference?
The Difference
Between a Cold and the Flu
The common cold and the flu are both viruses, although they are different viruses. Both kinds of virus cause respiratory illnesses, and they have similar symptoms. However, a cold is usually much milder than infection from a
seasonal flu virus.
Photo courtesy of Taylor Nulk
Because the symptoms for both the cold and the flu are similar, it can be difficult to tell them apart. Here are some cold symptoms to look for:
- sore throat
- congestion (stuffy nose)
- runny nose (usually lasts a day or so)
- cough
- slight fever
If you are not sure if you have a cold or the flu, and you would like to ask a question, you can always go to
doctors online advice
. You will get a personal answer, LIVE, from a legitimate doctor--usually within minutes.
If you have the flu, your
flu symptoms
will be similar but you will also notice:- fever – with a flu virus, you often run a HIGH fever. For adults, this is over 101 degrees F
- chills – a person with flu can feel hot one minute and be shivering with cold the next.
- body aches – muscles and bones ache. It's hard to find a comfortable position.
- fatigue – the flu makes you very tired. Energy levels are very low.
The symptoms above are common for the seasonal flu. The H1N1 flu virus circulating in spring of 2009 has some additional symptoms. It is also causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea in 38% of the victims. In addition many of the swine flu patients have a “barky” cough—not commonly seen with a cold or seasonal flu.
Allergies or a Cold?
To make things more complicated, allergies often mimic a cold, as well. If your nose is running (clear and liquid), but you don't have a fever or aches and pains, you may very well have allergies. Especially if you can identify an allergan—like flowers blooming outside your bedroom window or the sniffles every time you mow the grass. Also, if you have symptoms that last longer than 2 weeks, and your eyes are red, swollen and itchy, it is very suspicious that you have allergies. To make things even more complicated, if you have allergies, you are more likely to get colds because your nasal passages, bronchial tubes and lungs may already be irritated and inflamed. So that makes it harder to tell which it is! If you suspect that you have flu symptoms, not just cold symptoms, consider visiting your doctor to determine if you are right. The
H1N1 flu virus
, so far, has been responding to the
flu medicines
, Tamiflu and Relenza. Your doctor can prescribe a medication to help you be more comfortable and to get well faster, with no complications. You might also like:
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Cold Symptoms to Flu Virus
Cold Symptoms to Pandemic Flu
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