The back-to-school season can be stressful. It also marks the beginning of the cold and flu season, as well as the peak fall allergy season. Allergies and illness symptoms can look similar, however, illnesses are contagious while allergies are not. Illnesses can spread quickly in a school environment, especially among young children. Viral infections like colds may seem like a mild issue, however, a sick child can spread their infection to their entire class in just a day. Knowing when to keep your child home from school for illness symptoms is critical to your child’s health, and will help reduce the chance of their classmates also getting sick.
This article will review common illness symptoms, and tips to understand whether your child is experiencing seasonal allergies or a cold. If your child is feeling under the weather, AFC Urgent Care North Bergen is available 7 days a week to provide rapid care for patients of all ages. Simply walk in when it’s convenient, or schedule your visit in advance below.
Understanding the Difference Between Allergy and Illness Symptoms
If your child is complaining of symptoms like a runny nose or congestion, you may automatically assume that they’re sick. However, seasonal allergies can cause symptoms very similar to mild illness symptoms, which can make them difficult to differentiate. While these two conditions can cause similar symptoms, they’re caused by completely different underlying issues and require their own specific treatments. This is why understanding the connection between allergies and illness symptoms is so important.
Allergies and mild illnesses like a cold can cause similar symptoms including runny noses, congestion, coughing, sore throats, itchy eyes and fatigue. The main way to differentiate allergy symptoms from illness symptoms is to pay attention to how the symptoms act. Seasonal allergy symptoms will come and go with exposure. This means that if your child is exposed to an allergen, they may feel sick and experience symptoms, however the symptoms will disappear after a few hours. For most illnesses, symptoms will not come and go. Instead, illness symptoms tend to worsen over time.
When to Keep Your Child at Home for Illness or Allergy Symptoms
If your child is feeling under the weather, you should always keep them at home until you can identify the cause. Illnesses like colds are extremely contagious, and sending your child to school with a cold can result in the teacher and their classmates getting sick. Allergy symptoms are not contagious, however, in the case of both allergy and illness symptoms, feeling under the weather can affect your child’s performance at school. It is best to keep them at home while you get their symptoms under control.
When to Seek Medical Care
In most cases, mild illnesses and seasonal allergies can be treated at home with rest and over-the-counter medications. If your child is feeling under the weather and doesn’t seem to be improving after a couple of days, you may need to bring them to see a medical provider to determine what is causing their symptoms so that you can treat them effectively. Symptoms like a fever, body aches, and chills may indicate an illness that requires medical treatment.
Visit AFC North Bergen for Same-Day Symptom Diagnosis and Treatment
Having a sick child can be stressful. In order to allow their body to recover and protect their classroom, you should always keep your child home from school if they’re feeling sick. If their symptoms worsen over time or cannot be managed at home, they may need medical treatment. At AFC Urgent Care North Bergen, our walk-in clinic provides same-day illness care for patients of all ages. We’re open every day, just walk in when it’s convenient.
At AFC North Bergen, our walk-in clinic makes it easy to receive prompt care for your family without having to wait for an appointment at the pediatrician's office. We work with most medical insurance plans and have affordable rates for patients paying out-of-pocket. Simply walk into the clinic for same-day care, or give us a call to learn more at (201) 588-1300.
