Welcome to BrainStuff, a production of I Heart Radio.

Hey Brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum here.

There's significant potential for a 2020 twin-demic as flu season looms and the

COVID-19 pandemic continues. So this fall and winter when you feel sniffles and a

scratchy throat start to come on it's going to be only natural for you to wonder

what ails you, influenza or COVID-19.

Not to mention what do you do about it?

Both flu and COVID-19 are spread from close contact with another person

through coughing, sneezing, or talking, but the distinction is important because

although both are highly contagious respiratory diseases that are potentially dangerous, they're handled differently.

A positive COVID-19 test requires a person to isolate at home for 10 days after the test was initially

taken or the onset of symptoms according to the Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention. People with severe COVID-19 cases or who are immunocompromised may have to isolate even longer, up to 20 days,

depending on their doctor's advice.

This is a significant difference from influenza, where people can go back out into the public

once they've been fever-free without the use of fever-reducing medication for just 24 hours.

This obviously affects when a person is cleared to return to normal daily activities, such as they are during this

pandemic.

The mortality rates for both diseases are very different too.

For COVID-19, it's 3 to 4 percent, while for seasonal influenza, the rate is less than 0.1 percent,

according to the World Health Organization, which notes that 80 percent of COVID-19 cases are mild or

asymptomatic.

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