Common cold

Most of us have felt the effects of a common cold – adults get one once or twice a year, and children up to six times a year. Many viruses cause the symptoms of a cold, with rhinovirus being the most likely culprit. Symptoms of a cold include sneezing, a runny or blocked nose, sore throat and a cough. A cold is usually mild and you get better after one or two weeks.

Currently, COVID-19 is at the forefront of all our minds, so how do you tell them apart?

The short answer is that you can’t tell for definite without a swab, but some symptoms point more towards one than the other.

Similarities include having a cough, sore throat, tiredness, a runny nose and changes to taste or sense of smell. A fever and breathlessness are more likely to lean towards COVID-19 and sneezing is more likely with a cold.

If you have a continuous new cough, a fever or a change in your sense of taste or smell, you should follow government guidance to stay at home and arrange to be tested at a test centre or order a home test.