Cold and flu season is just around the corner. A common question parents ask is, “Is this a cold or the flu?”
Cold or flu?
Pay attention to the symptoms your child shows. Monitor your child for a few days and document whether your child’s condition is getting worse. If it’s getting worse, what you thought was a cold may actually be influenza.
- The onset. Sudden onset is associated with influenza. If the illness came on slowly, it may be a common cold.
- Fever. Flu often causes a high fever, whereas a cold may produce a mild fever or no fever.
- Fatigue. A cold can cause mild exhaustion. The flu may cause severe exhaustion.
- Body aches. A common cold doesn’t usually come with body aches. The flu may cause your child to feel achy all over.
Meet the flu
In the U.S., flu season runs from October to May.
- Flu symptoms usually begin about two days after exposure to the virus. Symptoms can include fever, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, loss of appetite, cough, sore throat, weakness, ear pain, nausea and diarrhea (more common in children).
- Flu symptoms can last about five days and should be gone within a week or two. It’s important to take influenza seriously as it can lead to pneumonia or other life-threatening complications.
- The flu is contagious. It’s spread by droplets that are coughed or sneezed into the air. They can be inhaled or picked up on common surfaces.
Say hello to the common cold
Kids can get eight or more colds per year. Symptoms of colds can be similar to the flu, but there are some key differences.
- Cold symptoms include sneezing, cough, sore or itchy throat, runny or stuffy nose and watery eyes. In some cases, people may have a fever, muscle or body aches and fatigue.
- Colds are contagious and are spread by a sneeze or cough, or touching a contaminated surface. Cold symptoms show up within two to three days after exposure to the virus and can last up to two weeks.
Prevent the spread
- Flu vaccines are recommended every year for everyone 6 months old and older. Vaccination isn’t a guarantee against getting the flu, but it may result in fewer or milder symptoms.
- Wash hands often with soap and warm water, especially before and after eating, using the bathroom, coughing or sneezing.
- Use a clean tissue to pick up used tissues, and never share cups or eating utensils.
- Keep your child home from school or daycare when they’re sick.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If needed, cough or sneeze into your upper arm, not your hands. Teach your child this technique.
If you have further questions or concerns, contact your child’s healthcare provider.
Learn more
- Is it a cold or RSV? Know when to call your child’s doctor
- Infant colds: What’s normal and what’s not
- ECMO saves newborn with severe lung damage after RSV scare
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Posted In Children's, Family Medicine, Flu, Parenting
