By Greg Halbleib

BLOOMINGTON – Is it the cold or is it the flu?

Symptoms of both are similar, but Dr. John Wieland of Bloomington says the flu hits harder.

“Most cold symptoms are a little less severe, so you tend to get a sore or scratchy throat for a day or two,” Wieland told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin. “You might get some aches and pains. It’s pretty rare to get a fever associated with (a cold).”

Wieland said getting a flu shot is a good idea, but since the vaccine is developed using last year’s strains, it’s not a sure bet to avoid the flu.

“The vaccine makers try to predict what viruses are going to be most prevalent,” Wieland said. “There are multiple influenza viruses, and even the best vaccine only covers four of them.”

Wieland said this year’s vaccine has a success rate of about 60 percent, which he added is good.

The doctor also said it’s not uncommon for someone to be hit with a cold more than once during winter.

“The common cold virus even during a cold and flu season will mutate,” Wieland said. “So somebody who says, ‘This is my third cold,’ that’s true, it’s their third separate (cold). It’s probably a viral mutation that they’re getting. It’s not the same infection.”

Wieland compared that to the way flu viruses change from year to year and why the vaccines attempt to change with them.