That's Fit

It's strange how the holiday season coincides with flu season, isn't it? Well, I suppose unfair is a better word than strange. It's especially unfair for kids. Rather than being able to fully enjoy tearing into their presents and dancing around the living room in their pajamas, many kids sometimes find themselves bedridden and feeling awful. Damn you, flu!!

But wait a second ... what if it's not the flu at all? What if these children have something entirely different? Something worse, or even something less severe? Here are a list of 5 common illnesses that kids suffer from during this time of year:

1. The Common Cold. There are over two hundred viruses that can cause a cold, so it's quite common for kids to pick it up at school, day care, or wherever else they are in contact with many other kids. The obvious cold symptoms are runny nose, coughing, and lethargy.

2. Ear Infection. These generally occur with the greatest frequency in kids under the age of two. Because a child of this age does not have fully developed Eustachian tubes (which drain fluid from the middle ear to the throat), this area becomes a breeding ground for bacteria, thus causing infection. In addition to feeling pain in their ear and headache, a child can also become feverish.

3. Bronchiolitis. This illness typically affects infants and results in the inflammation of the lower airway. Though the initial symptoms of bronchiolitis are similar to that of a cold, they are typically followed (usually within one to two days) by an increased difficulty with breathing. Wheezing, mucus collection, and a low-grade fever are characteristic of the full onset of this disease.

4. Croup. A common upper-respiratory illness that usually leads to hoarseness of voice, labored breathing, and a barking cough. Over the counter or prescription drugs can be used to reduce inflammation and open up the child's airway.

5. The Flu. There were four other possibilities listed, but let's face it, it's called flu season for a reason. Although there are many other illnesses that can produce 'Flu-like symptoms,' if your child has any or all of the following symptoms, they may have the flu after all: high fever, muscle aches and pains, headache, dry cough, sore throat, weakness, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, and runny nose.