Is it Covid-19, a Cold, or Allergies?

Symptoms like cough, sore throat, and runny or stuffy nose are commonly experienced by people who have Covid-19, a cold, or allergies. Knowing what illness you have is important to understand how to prevent the spread and your treatment options.

At Rapid City Healthcare in Irving, Texas, the urgent care specialists have experience diagnosing and treating patients of all ages for the common cold, allergies, and Covid-19.

The difference between Covid-19 and seasonal allergies

While some of the symptoms of allergies and Covid-19 are identical, there are some telltale signs that you have one over the other. A runny or stuffy nose is a common symptom of both Covid-19 and seasonal allergies, but if you have an itchy nose, eyes, mouth, or inner ear, you are likely dealing with allergies and not Covid. Also, if your symptoms include sneezing, it is more likely you have allergies than Covid.

Seasonal allergies are not caused by a virus; instead, they are the immune system’s response to an allergen like grass or pollen.

On the other hand, if you have a fever, diarrhea, or muscle aches, you’re more likely dealing with Covid than seasonal allergies, which rarely have these symptoms.

If you experience shortness of breath or difficulty breathing and you are not asthmatic, you are more likely to have Covid than allergies. Allergies won’t cause respiratory problems unless you have asthma that’s triggered by allergens.

Visit Rapid City Healthcare for a Covid-19 test if you have any of these common Covid symptoms.You can get a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test with result or an antigen (rapid) test.

The difference between Covid-19 and the common cold

It can be difficult to determine if your symptoms are just a cold or if you’ve contracted Covid because many of the most common symptoms of both illnesses overlap, including:

Cough
Sore throat
Runny or stuffy nose

In addition, several of the usual Covid-19 symptoms are sometimes experienced by people with colds, including muscle aches, tiredness, fever, and loss of taste or smell, which makes it even harder to know whether you have a cold or Covid. There is no cure for colds, and treatments involve pain relievers and over-the-counter cold remedies. Most colds resolve in 3-10 days.

On the other hand, if your symptoms include diarrhea or nausea or vomiting, you are more likely to have Covid, as those are not symptoms of the cold virus. Covid symptoms tend to appear 2-14 days after exposure.

How to avoid getting Covid-19 or the cold

The Covid-19 vaccines help reduce the risk of getting and spreading Covid. If you’re in a medical facility that may have a high number of people with Covid-19, like a hospital, it’s recommended that you wear a mask whether you are vaccinated or not.

You can help reduce your risk of getting the cold or Covid by maintaining social distance with anyone who is sick or has symptoms, wearing a face mask in indoor public spaces, washing your hands often with soap and water and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.