It's tough to find a silver lining in the COVID-19 pandemic, especially now that the highly infectious delta variant is in the mix. But one positive outcome of all the social distancing and mask-wearing we've been doing over the last year or so is that many of us, perhaps for the first time in memory, got through all four seasons without coming down with a cold.
This summer, though, as people are catching up on lost socializing time, colds have made a comeback. Some of the sick are saying these colds are especially bad.
In July, Lisa Sanders, 57, a nonprofit director living in Silver Spring, Maryland, had to take a half-day off from work and cancel an upcoming weekend trip because of a cold. "I hadn't been that sick in a long time," she says. "I felt weak and congested, and my husband got sick, too."
The overlap between symptoms of a cold and symptoms of COVID-19 can add a layer of anxiety. Odette Veneziano, a marketing professional living in New York City, was worried enough about her runny nose, headache, and nasal congestion in late May that she went for a COVID-19 test. "It came back negative, but it was the first time I'd had symptoms like that since the pandemic started," she says. "For five days, I was extremely fatigued, which was a real concern. The cold felt so much worse than usual that I marked those days on my calendar."
Whether people are actually having more severe colds this summer or just perceive this to be true is not a question anyone can answer at this point, doctors say.
What is certain: "Everyone is more nervous about their symptoms, so there may be a perception that a cold is worse because we are hyper aware of how we're feeling," says Jeffrey Loria, MD, an internist in New York City.
RELATED: Is It a Cold, the Flu, or COVID-19?
As Masks Come Off, Virus Transmission Picks Up
Dr. Loria reports that from March of 2020 through early spring of 2021, he saw virtually no patients with colds, flu, sinus infections, or upper respiratory infections. "That's a testament to the fact that most of us were wearing masks and weren't around other people," he says.
There's evidence to back this up on a global level. For instance, a study published in the February 2021 issue of Nature Communications looking at the effect of New Zealand's national COVID-19 lockdown found what the authors called "an unprecedented reduction of influenza and other respiratory viral infections in 2020."
A telling U.S. statistic: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the 2020–2021 flu season resulted in only one infant death from influenza, compared with 199 the previous season.
"Masks helped prevent viral transmissions, not just for COVID-19 but for other infections, too," says Anna Sick-Samuels, MD, MPH, a pediatric infectious disease specialist and assistant professor of pediatrics at Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore. "But as the masks come down and all the protective measures have been relaxed a bit, we're seeing some of the other respiratory viruses circulate again — from simply breathing on others, coughing, sneezing, or going out to public venues."
Consider what's happening with the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). In June of 2021, the CDC issued a warning about an unusual RSV upsurge in a number of Southern states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Kentucky, and cases have begun to rise in other parts of the country too, per the CDC on July 27. RSV generally causes mild, cold-like symptoms but can sometimes lead to dangerous illness in very young children and the elderly; it is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in infants.
RSV typically spreads in the fall and winter, but uncharacteristically began to appear in March this year.
RELATED: RSV Infections: Why the Surge?
Practice Makes Perfect (for the Immune System)
It is theoretically possible that our immune systems have gotten out of practice (so to speak) from lack of exposure to viruses, which could potentially make certain respiratory infections like cold, flu, and RSV more serious.
"If you're exposed to the same virus multiple times, your immune system gets a boost and may be faster to react to that virus, producing milder symptoms, the next time you get it," says Dr. Sick-Samuels. She adds, "Given the fact that there are hundreds of different respiratory viruses, often it's just a matter of chance if your body has seen it before or not."
There is specific concern about RSV, CDC experts say, because babies and elderly people who were not exposed to the virus during COVID-19 lockdowns may be at higher risk of severe illness.
But the same measures that help prevent COVID-19 transmission — social distancing, mask-wearing, hand-washing, staying home when symptoms strike, keeping hands away from the face — can also help quash the spread of RSV, as well as viruses that can cause cold and flu.
RELATED: Your Day-by-Day Guide to the Common Cold
How to Treat a Cold
There is no cure for the common cold (antibiotics, which kill bacteria, are not effective against viral illnesses), but that doesn't mean you can't treat your aches, pains, and sniffles. Besides staying hydrated and getting plenty of rest, Loria notes, "You can manage your symptoms one by one — say, by taking acetaminophen for aches, pains, chills, and fever; decongestants for a runny or stuffy nose; and cough suppressants."
Additionally, you should consider getting tested for COVID-19 if you're not feeling well. "We were doing dozens of COVID-19 tests a week at the beginning of the pandemic, then we got down to only one or two a week," says Loria about his medical practice. "Now we're kicking it back up again because of the uptick in colds, RSV, and the overlapping symptoms with COVID-19."
"If I got sick now, my first reaction would be, 'Oh my gosh, is it COVID-19?'" says Sick-Samuels. "I would definitely get tested, and I would 'keep my symptoms to myself' by staying home until I felt better. Usually, you can just ride a cold out, since most respiratory viruses resolve on their own."
What's most important: Don't panic if you find yourself sniffling and sneezing. Says Loria, "The best thing people can do in light of the delta variant is to get tested if they're concerned, treat their symptoms, and not be overly alarmed that colds and sinus infections are back."
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