You’re sniffling, your head hurts and you’ve got a cough. Is it just a cold, or is it the flu?
There are clues that can help you figure it out, experts at the University of Mississippi Medical Center advise.
Symptoms of flu, unlike cold, are abrupt.
You might feel fine, then awful within an hour. Headaches and chills are rare with a cold, but common with flu.
“Flu may include fever of 100 degrees or higher, and extreme fatigue associated with the flu can last for weeks,” said Dr. Tearsanee Davis, FNP, director of clinical and advanced practice operations at the UMMC Center for Telehealth. “Cold symptoms are generally milder and last about a week. Flu tends to be much worse.”
Colds usually go away on their own, but complications from the flu can be deadly for certain groups of people. If symptoms persist longer than they should, you may want to consult your provider.
“Flu season generally runs from about November through March, although you can get it early in the fall and late in the spring,” Davis said.
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