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Cold, Flu, or Allergy? Find Out What's Ailing You

Each year, millions of school and work days are missed because of colds and flu, and right now we are heading into the prime season. How you can best treat your condition depends on whether it's a cold or flu that's ailing you. Since these conditions share many of the same symptoms, they're sometimes hard to tell apart.

Complicating the problem, many people get bad allergies in the fall, when ragweed pollen is at its peak in many areas, and winter can bring its own allergies as people spend more time indoors around pet dander and house dust mites. When the sniffles, stuffy nose and coughing begin, this chart can help you decide how to handle your symptoms.

Symptoms	Airborne Allergy	Cold	Flu
Fever	Never	Rare	Usual, high (100-102°F), sometimes higher-especially in young children); lasts 3-4 days
Headache	Rare	Rare	Common
General Aches, Pains	Never	Slight	Usual; often severe
Fatigue, Weakness	Sometimes	Sometimes	Usual, can last up to 3 weeks
Extreme Exhaustion	Never	Never	Usual, at the beginning of the illness
Stuffy, Runny Nose	Common	Common	Sometimes
Sneezing	Usual	Usual	Sometimes
Sore Throat	Sometimes	Common	Sometimes
Cough	Sometimes	Common, hacking	Common, can become severe
Chest Discomfort	Rare	Mild to moderate	Common
Treatment	Antihistamines Nasal steroids (prescription only) Decongestants	Antihistamines Decongestants Aspirin, acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) or ibuprofen for aches and pains	Aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen for aches, pains and fever Antiviral medicines (see your doctor)
Prevention	Avoid those things that you are allergic to, such as pollen, house dust mites, mold, pet dander, cockroaches	Wash your hands often Avoid close contact with anyone with a cold	Wash your hands often Avoid close contact with anyone with the flu Annual vaccination Antiviral medicines (see your doctor)
Complications	Sinus infection, asthma	Sinus congestion, middle ear infection, asthma	Bronchitis, pneumonia; can be life-threatening