(Photo provided) With the arrival of spring, parents have been itching to ask me how they can tell the difference between an allergy or a common cold, so here goes: ¯ Between 40 and 50 million Americans are affected by allergic diseases. While most children with colds and allergies will have noses that run, children with allergies will do a lot more sniffling and sneezing, not to mention itching, along with having more watery eyes with dark circles from rubbing them so much due to allergic irritation. ¯ Common colds are caused by germs called viruses while allergies represent the body reacting to an environmental trigger such as pollen from grass, ragweed, and trees, mold, dust mites, animal dander, and even foods and medications — any of these can cause a release of chemicals including one called histamine that results in the allergic symptoms I just described.