It is important that one must know the difference between cold and flu. Most especially now that it’s the season of having cold and flu. With the Covid-19 on the side, you cannot afford to be sick particularly the ones involving respiratory illness. Cold and flu are both respiratory illnesses. However, cold is much milder compared to flu. While common cold could only last for few days, flu symptoms can last up to several weeks or months. This can result in pneumonia that might need immediate hospitalization.
To educate more about these two, here are tidbits about common cold and flu.
Common symptoms of cold
You can tell a cold outbreak if you start experiencing sore throat that goes for days. On its fifth usual day, expect other nasal symptoms, like runny nose, congestion and cough. You don’t get fever for just having cold. It’s a 1 to 10 ratio and cold associated with mild fever usually happens to kids. Having cold for first few days makes your nose teems produce watery nasal secretions. This becomes thicker and darker overtime. The dark mucus found implies bacterial infection, like sinus infection.
Cold symptoms only last for a week or less. It is better to isolate or wear a mask when outside because the illness is highly contagious.
Common symptoms of flu
Now, if you feel like your condition doesn’t seem to improve after a week, that’s when flu comes in the picture. As stated above, flu is more severe than cold. It has common symptoms like cold because you will experience severe sore throat, congestion and cough. However, there are other warning indications of flu that you won’t go through just by having cold. Severe symptoms involve headache, high fever, muscle pain or aches, soreness, vomiting and diarrhea.
Flu isn’t something to ignore or left untreated because this could lead to pneumonia, a very common illness that has a common sign, like having fever that comes back after a day or two. Pneumonia usually affects elderly people or those with lung and heart complication. Besides fever, you will experience breathing difficulty.
When to seek professional help?
In case your condition gets worst day by day, you need to consult your personal doctor in emergency dental phoenix. Flu or cold symptoms may result in persistent fever, painful swallowing, chronic cough, congestion and severe headaches.
In times of pandemic, the last thing we want is to get sick. Hospitals and our front liners already are swamped with Covid-19 cases and to ensure we don’t get exposed from the virus itself is to practice the health and safety protocols. Common colds and flu are best prevented through washing your hands thoroughly. This basic preventive method kills any potential risks of infection and virus.