AAAAACHOOOOOO! Is it a cold or is it an allergy?

Go to one or two of the following links to learn the difference . Then define each of the following vocabulary words:

allergen
allergy
antibodies
antigen
hay fever
histamine
immune system
mast cell
pollen
rhinovirus
virus

Cold, Flu, Allergies
Common Cold
Cold, Flu, Allergies
Kids' Health: Cold
What's a Virus?
Fact Sheet: Common Cold

Complete one of the following Cold/Allergy Activities:

Create a flowchart to compare and contrast the body's reaction (symptoms) to an allergen and to a virus. Use both text and symbols/pictures and the vocabulary terms above to explain:
1. the antigen entering the body
2. the immune system's various reactions
3. the body's physical reactions (symptoms)
4. how the body heals

Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Use the vocabulary terms above to explain:
1. If you have a runny nose, fever, sore throat, and headache, how might you be able to tell if
you have a cold or allergic reaction?
2. Why are people more susceptible to certain allergies at different times of the year?
3. Using what you know about how the common cold is transmitted, how might you try to
prevent catching a cold?

Write a SKIT
Diagnosing allergies and viral infections can be confusing, and their treatments are different. Write and perform a skit in which a mother takes her ill child to see the pediatrician. She wants medication for a cold, but the physician thinks it is an allergy. The physician tries to explain the difference to the mother and tells her what the she and the child should do to get better. Make sure the physician answers the mothers questions about:
- How a vaccine works
- How antihistamines work
- How antibiotics work
- Why rest is important
- Whether or not there is treatment for a virus and why or why not
- Why it is wise not to treat a fever
- How the common cold is spread