Allergy season 2021: How to tell if your symptoms are coronavirus or allergies - NJ.com

When our eyes are itchy, our noses are runny, we’re coughing up a storm — and we’re wondering if the symptoms are allergies or the coronavirus.

Mark Weinstein, director of allergy and immunology for Riverside Medical Group in northern New Jersey, said the same rule of thumb applies this year for differentiating between COVID and seasonal pollen reactions: allergies will bring about more itching in the nose and throat, along with watery eyes and sinus pressure.

But the biggest difference is only COVID comes with a fever, Weinstein added.

“The hallmark of allergy is itchiness,” Weinstein said.

“The itchy nose, itchy eyes, itchy ears, itchy throat.

There are several additional ways to tell the difference between COVID and allergies, experts said.

Weinstein also said coronavirus patients can have gastrointestinal symptoms — nausea, vomiting, diarrhea — which are rarely seen with seasonal allergies.

Typically, battling allergies does not put you in a higher risk category when dealing with coronavirus — unless you suffer from asthma that’s triggered by allergies, Weinstein said.