Most of us will come down with a cold, the flu or be affected by
allergies. When Tanja Adams starts to get the sniffles she says it's
sometimes hard to figure out if her allergies are acting up, if she's
caught a cold, or if she's coming down with the flu, "I've gone to
work sick lots of times and I know my co-workers have too because they're sneezing all around the office."

We're all familiar with that scene. But when we have sneezing, watery
eyes and the sniffles how do we know if we have a cold or an allergy?

One simple way to tell the difference is just to remember that a cold is
short-lived and passed from person to person, whereas an allergy is not
contagious but rather a reaction of the immune system.

Dr. Zellner explains, "Frequently it's hard to tell the difference. The
severe malaise, the aches and pains that occur separate the cold from
the allergy symptom, which is more transient seasonal, repetitive then
the cold."

Then there's the flu, which begins quite differently and is usually
accompanied with a fever. Registered Nurse Nancy Hansen explains, "Flu is a respiratory condition that consists of fever, cough, and aches and pains."

"Lots of fluid, control the temperature elevation using some Tylenol
and making sure the patient gets well fed and hydrated," advises Dr.
Zellner.

Since proper nutrition can help boost our immune system during the times we are sick, it makes sense to try and drink plenty of fluids and eat the healthiest foods possible, regardless if you have a cold or the flu.