Signs of the Flu in Children

Signs of the flu in children include nausea and vomiting, fever, chills, aches and cough. Although many of these symptoms are similar to cold symptoms, WebMD notes that flu symptoms are more severe than cold symptoms, and often start abruptly and worsen within two or three days.

Nausea and Vomiting

WebMD sites nausea as a common symptom of the flu among both children and adults. Vomiting and stomach pain are related symptoms that are also very common.

Fever

According to WebMD, a high fever is one of the signs of the flu. The flu causes high fevers that often range between 100 and 104 degrees. If the fever goes higher than 105 degrees, the child's doctor should be contacted to help bring the fever down immediately. According to VHI Healthcare, fevers 107 and 108 degrees can cause brain damage.

Chills

Chills and are listed as a symptom of the flu in children on WebMD. Chills usually precede a fever in a child who has the flu and often cause goosebumps, shaking and a cold feeling throughout the entire body.

Aches

According to Discovery Health, the flu triggers a response in the body to send out additional white blood cells to fight the infection. White blood cells carry cytokines, which cause inflammation in the muscles. The influx of excess blood causes muscle aches in both children and adults.

Cough

The flu frequently causes a dry cough in both children and adults, but the cough is usually severe in children as their throat and lungs become infected easily. According to Discovery Health, the flu causes inflammation in the respiratory tract and mucus drainage that irritates the throat and triggers a coughing reaction. Discovery Health also explains that a cough can sometimes linger long after other symptoms of the flu have disappeared, can occasionally cause a sore throat as well, and can sometimes be a sign of another accompanying infection such as pneumonia.