Does Your Child Have a Cold or an Allergy?
Fall and winter are the prime seasons for
the common cold. The average child
catches as many as 10 colds every year.
Do your children catch more than their share of colds or get colds that linger beyond the usual week or two? If so, they could have allergies.
Detecting the Difference
Colds and allergies share many of the same symptoms, including:- A runny or stuffy nose
- Sneezing
- Coughing
- Fatigue
- Sore throat
But colds sometimes trigger aches, pains, and fever. Allergies never cause those symptoms, but they usually trigger itchy eyes, mouth, and throat.
Here’s another difference: Cold symptoms come on gradually and disappear within several days to a week. But allergy symptoms start almost right after a child is exposed, and symptoms can linger all year.
Helping Your Children
The best way to prevent colds is to teach your children to wash their hands—often. When water is unavailable, use alcohol-based disinfectant hand cleaners. Encourage children to keep their hands away from their eyes, nose, and mouth, where cold germs can gain entry. And when they sneeze or cough, tell them to cover their nose or mouth with their elbow instead of a bare hand.Preventing allergic reactions requires avoiding the things that trigger them, such as pollen, dust mites, mold, pet dander, and cockroaches. To battle pollen, for example, use air conditioners in your home and car when possible to reduce exposure.
There’s no cure for either the common cold or allergies, but treatments for the symptoms of both include antihistamines and decongestants. Before trying any treatment, though, talk with your children’s doctor. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently recommended that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines not be given to children younger than age 2.
