Is it a Summer Cold or Allergies?

Are you unsure whether you have a summer cold or allergies? If so, you are not alone. Due to the similarities in symptoms, summer colds and allergy are often confused.

Similar symptoms lead to confusion ^14,15

	Cold	Allergy
Itchy and watery eyes	X	✔
Fever	✔	X
Sore throat	✔	✔
Body aches	✔	X
Eczema	X	✔
Runny nose	✔	✔
Nasal congestion	✔	✔
Coughing	✔	✔
Sneezing	✔	✔
Post nasal drip	✔	✔
Headache	✔	X

 

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Are Your Symptoms Cold or Allergy Related?

A simple way to determine whether your symptoms are Cold or Allergy related is to ask yourself the following questions:¹⁴

Do the symptoms suddenly appear?

• If symptoms suddenly appear, they are more than likely to be caused by an allergy. When symptoms appear over a day or two the cause is a cold.

How long do the symptoms last?

• Symptoms of a cold last for a week or two. Allergy symptoms last as long as one is exposed to the triggering allergen.

Do symptoms occur at the same times each year?

• If symptoms occur at the same time each year, they could be due to seasonal allergies.

Due to regional differences in SA – Gauteng experiences grass season linked to allergy for 10 months of the year.¹⁶

In the Western Cape, the allergy season tends to be from September to March.¹⁶

 

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Our Product Range

For allergy symptoms try Sinutab Nasal Spray range.

Speak to your pharmacist about the Sinutab range of products.

ZA/BLY/19-1023a