Covid, colds and flu can have similar symptoms
A new Covid variant is spreading and is expected to become the dominant strain. As friends and families share stories of newly caught coughs, colds, and Covid-like illnesses, a GP has shared exactly what is happening in her practice, reports Manchester Evening News.
Dr Helen Wall has also shared serious Covid symptoms that ‘seem to be really wiping people out’ – symptoms that stand out from the milder effects of previous variants. For doctors like the Bolton GP, one of the main difficulties is that a lot of symptoms blend with a host of illnesses that often rise when the weather starts to turn colder, and children return to the classroom.
She said: “We could well be seeing the new Covid variant in practice. At the moment, it seems to be a bit more flu-like than previous iterations of Covid, with a high temperature, a cough, an aching body, headache.
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“Some of the symptoms in the past were more cough and cold symptoms, but at the moment, Covid does seem to be wiping people out. We’re seeing an increase in respiratory infections, you see that every time the weather changes, and there’s always a rise when the children go back to school.
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“But whether that’s Covid is really difficult to say because a lot of the symptoms blur together with other illnesses that are prevalent at this time of year. Whether it’s Covid versus flu is hard to separate.
“People who have the flu tend to be extremely unwell. Sometimes, people say they’ve got the flu but have actually got a bad cold. Generally, if you’ve got true flu, you’re bed-bound. With Covid, you might actually be quite well. You might be coughing and having other symptoms, but able to go about your business – and you might be unintentionally spreading it to people who are vulnerable.”
The NHS lists the following symptoms for Covid-19:
- a high temperature or shivering (chills) – a high temperature means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
- shortness of breath
- feeling tired or exhausted
- an aching body
- a headache
- a sore throat
- a blocked or runny nose
- loss of appetite
- diarrhoea
- feeling sick or being sick
The NHS lists the following symptoms for common colds:
- a blocked or runny nose
- sneezing
- a sore throat
- a hoarse voice
- a cough
- feeling tired and unwell
You may also have:
- a high temperature
- aching muscles
- a loss of taste and smell
- a feeling of pressure in your ears and face
The NHS lists the symptoms for flu:
- a sudden high temperature
- an aching body
- feeling tired or exhausted
- a dry cough
- a sore throat
- a headache
- difficulty sleeping
- loss of appetite
- diarrhoea or tummy pain
- feeling sick and being sick
The symptoms are similar for children, but they can also get pain in their ear and appear less active.
