Because allergies and colds have similar symptoms, it can be difficult to determine whether what you are experiencing is a cold or seasonal allergies. Determining the cause of your symptoms is important, because how you treat a cold is different from how you treat allergies. In addition, if left untreated or treated improperly, it can result in more serious complications. Allergies can turn into bronchial infections and colds can turn into sinus infections. Once the initial issue turns into a more serious problem, recovery can be delayed from a few weeks to a few months.
What is a cold?
A cold is a virus, which is transmittable. You can “catch a cold” from another person when they send the virus airborne by sneezing or coughing. A cold virus can also be transmitted by shaking hands and by simply coming into contact with the same items that a person with a cold virus has used or held. This is why colds and flus spread like wildfire throughout offices. Modern energy efficient buildings also don’t help with colds and flus as they keep the viruses contained or even spread it through the system. One of the main differences between a cold and allergies is that a cold is transmittable and allergies are not. If you go into the office with a cold, you risk infecting everyone around you. If you go into the office with allergies, the only one that will suffer is you.
What is an allergy?
Allergies are caused by an overactive immune system that mistakes harmless substances like pollen and dust for foreign invaders. When your body recognizes these foreign invaders, it releases a substance called histamines. It is these histamines that cause the cold-like symptoms. This is why most allergy medications are called anti-histamines. They help prevent your body from releasing the histamines to fight the harmless substances. Unlike a virus, the only thing working against you is your own immune system. The pollen or dust isn’t contributing to your symptoms the same way a cold or flu virus is. With allergies, modern energy efficient buildings and HVAC systems can actually be helpful, since they keep pollen and other outdoor allergens at bay.
10 Ways to Determine whether it’s a Cold or Allergies
1. Fever
An allergy will rarely cause a fever, so if your temperature is high, you probably have a cold, not allergies.
2. Fatigue
Allergy medications have come a long way and while there are a few that can still cause you to feel drowsy or sleepy, most will not. If you are not on any allergy medications and you feel tired, worn out or exhausted, you probably have a cold. While allergies themselves have a number of the same symptoms as a cold, fatigue is generally not one of them.
3. Itchy throat or sore throat
Allergies can irritate the back of your throat and cause an itchy sensation, but a sore throat is generally the symptom of a cold, not allergies. Painful swallowing and swollen glands are often symptoms of a cold or infection, not allergies. If you regularly suffer from allergies, it’s important to learn the difference between the itching sensation that signals the onset of allergies and the feeling of a sore throat brought on by a cold.
4. Itchy, watery eyes
Eyes are another area that can become irritated with allergies that are generally not affected by a cold. If you have itchy or watery eyes, you probably have allergies not a cold. One key thing to notice about allergies is that they tend to cause more itching and irritation. If you feel a constant “tickling” sensation in your eyes, nose or in the back of your throat, there is a good chance you have allergies, not a cold.
5. Mucus
If your mucus is clear or watery and stays that way, you probably have allergies. Generally, when you have a cold, your mucus will become thick and possibly discolored. If your nose runs clear and steady, you probably have allergies. Untreated allergies, however, can also develop into a sinus infection, which will generally turn mucus thick and discolored. The key is time. If your mucus turns thick and discolored after you develop other symptoms of a cold, you probably have a cold. If you have symptoms for several days before your mucus turns thick and discolored, you likely have allergies that have developed into a sinus infection.
6. Season
Most allergy sufferers are allergic to something specific that occurs during a certain season. The most prevalent time for allergies are early spring and fall, whereas cold and flu season tends to happen in late fall and winter. Pollen allergies tend to be particularly bad in the spring, whereas ragweed allergies are often triggered in the fall.
Sometimes, an allergic reaction can happen in an “off-season” for several reasons. Unusually high winds can sometimes kick up allergens that would otherwise be lying dormant or an unusually rainy season may cause such high levels of allergens that even people who don’t normally suffer from allergies will experience allergy symptoms. Traveling can also expose you to allergens you might not normally be exposed to. Allergies can also develop at any time, so a person who has never had a problem with allergies before can suddenly develop seasonal allergies. If you notice yourself getting cold-like symptoms at the same time every year, you probably have an allergy.
7. People around you
If everyone at the office is sick or getting sick with a cold and you start developing cold-like symptoms, you probably have a cold. If no one at the office is sick, but you start developing cold-like symptoms, you might have allergies.
8. Coughing
While both a cold and allergies can cause coughing, a cold-related cough will remain fairly constant, while an allergy related cough is the most severe at night. If you don’t cough in the morning, but frequently during the day, you probably have allergies.
9. Duration
A cold will generally clear up in about 7-10 days, but allergies can go on for weeks or even months. If you don’t feel tired and achy, but your nose just keeps running and running, you probably have allergies not a cold.
10. Onset
A cold will generally take a few days to develop after exposure to a virus, whereas your body’s allergic response will kick in the second it is introduced to the offending agent. If you start to feel progressively worse and worse over the course of a few days, you probably have a cold. If you seem to have symptoms that came out of nowhere and without warning, you are most likely dealing with allergies.
