{"id":12388,"date":"2021-05-07T15:42:19","date_gmt":"2021-05-07T13:42:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/?p=12388"},"modified":"2021-05-07T15:42:19","modified_gmt":"2021-05-07T13:42:19","slug":"can-allergy-symptoms-mask-a-covid-19-infection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/can-allergy-symptoms-mask-a-covid-19-infection\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Seasonal Allergy Symptoms Mask a COVID-19 Infection?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Feeling all worn out, accompanied by shortness of breath? Before your<\/span><b> COVID-19 panic<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> sets in, you should eliminate one less dangerous culprit \u2014 <\/span><b>seasonal allergies<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each year, up to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/allergy-statistics-infographic\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">30% of Americans<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">get runny noses due to airborne allergies (allergic rhinitis). Changing your surroundings, like going on a <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">camping trip<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, for example, might put you in contact with an allergen for the first time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So how can you tell the difference between seasonal respiratory allergy and a COVID-19 infection?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Allergies vs. COVID-19 Symptoms<\/b><\/h3>\n<h4><b>Symptoms Typical for Respiratory Allergies<\/b><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">scratchy throat<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">watery and itchy eyes<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sneezing<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><b>Symptoms Characteristic for a COVID-19<\/b> <b>Infection<\/b><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fever\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">chills<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">aches<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">loss of taste<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">loss of smell<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">conjunctivitis<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nausea<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">vomiting<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">diarrhea<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">skin rash<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4><b>Overlapping Symptoms<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unfortunately, allergic rhinitis and COVID-19 share a not-so-short list of symptoms. According to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/need-extra-precautions\/infographic-overlap-symptoms.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the CDC<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, these include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fatigue<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">headache<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sore throat<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cough\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">shortness of breath<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">difficulty breathing<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nasal congestion<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">runny nose<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, these symptoms are different in both quality and sensation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>cough<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in allergy-prone people is caused by<\/span><b> post-nasal drip<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, not a lung infection like in COVID-19 patients.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Post-nasal drip also irritates the throat opening the path for infection (<\/span><b>sore throat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), which can be aggravated by<\/span><b> dry air <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in people with seasonal allergy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">COVID-19-caused sore throat feels <\/span><b>swollen and prickly<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with mild burning or itching sensation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>headache <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in seasonal allergies results from sinus clogging up and is usually worse at specific pressure points.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The coronavirus-induced <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news-medical.net\/health\/COVID-19-and-Headache.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">headache<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, on the other hand, <\/span><b>extends to the<\/b> <b>whole head<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Plus, it<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">usually manifests as severe <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.novanthealth.org\/healthy-headlines\/covid-19-and-headaches-what-you-need-to-know\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>pressure-like pain<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That said, if you\u2019re still not sure whether you\u2019ve caught COVID-19 or you just got allergies, you should start with OTC antihistamines to eliminate allergy symptoms and prevent allergy-induced complications, such as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/asthma-statistics\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">asthma<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Only a high-sensitivity PCR test can tell whether you are, indeed, infected with COVID-19.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Feeling all worn out, accompanied by shortness of breath? Before your COVID-19 panic sets in, you should eliminate one less dangerous culprit \u2014 seasonal allergies. Each year, up to 30% of Americans get runny noses due to airborne allergies (allergic rhinitis). Changing your surroundings, like going on a camping trip, for example, might put you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":12389,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[84],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12388"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12388"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12388\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}