Allergies or a cold?

Anthony has a runny nose-a clear runny nose-and really it's only on one side! LOL! I am supposed to go see a friend tomorrow and I was bringing the boys. I said I didn't know, as Anthony had a runny nose. She said it could be allergies-which got me thinking? How in the world do you know? We haven't been around anyone with a cold(that at least has told us!). His right eye I have seen a tear or two as well. He has sneezed too.

His runny nose started yesterday afternoon I noticed. It's not constant. Yet at least... So-how do you know the difference? DH and I both have no allergies-to anything...

 

I thought Ana had allergies, but then the runny nose turned into a horrible cough and a fever. So I wish I knew the difference too. I guess see how he is doing tomorrow morning and then decide if he's up for an outing. :hug:

 

Supposedly kids can't develop seasonal allergies until three because they haven't had enough chances to be exposed to the pollen. However, I don't know that that would apply to year-round things like dust and mold.

 

This is a site I found a few months ago when I had the same question:

cold or allergy

Now I reference this if I have a memory lapse

 

I have been wondering this same thing, as Lily has a very very runny nose today but no other symptoms, and the climate drastically changed in the last 24 hours. According to that website it's hard to tell.

 

I have wondered the same thing, I really do think Luke suffers from allergies because he usually does have clear, runny nose, itchy eyes, sneezes but when we asked our pedi, she said that they don't diagnose allergies in kids under 2, so I have no idea!

 

It is always a tough call!

Jacob definitely has seasonal allergies, even though the peds say that they shouldn't at this age. He gets runny nose, watery/red eyes, and sneezing every spring and fall since last spring. My family is highly allergic, though.

 

Like Erin said, it really is a tough call! If symptoms don't change for better or worse for longer than a week, I'd lean more towards allergies. Especially if there's no fever or achiness.

One other thing to consider. The nurses that I work with at the allergist's office I fill in at, have told me that often docs don't diagnose kids with seasonal allergies before age 2. However, it's really more about having at least two seasons of exposure to the allergen vs. an absolute age.

So a couple of you guys with kiddos less than two, this is still their second spring and they were exposed to pollen last year. So this year having symptoms. It's like food allergies, you won't have a reaction the first time you eat something, it's on the subsequent exposures.