Allergy season is upon us, and New York Times reporter Tara Parker-Pope, who’s been covering the pandemic for the Times, wrote an article to help her readers distinguish between garden variety respiratory allergies and COVID. We thought our readers might also like some added clarity on the differences between the two. Here’s what she said:1. If you generally have allergies in the spring, are your symptoms the same as always? If they’re different, especially if you’re getting sicker or have had a potential COVID exposure, get tested. 2. Although typical allergy symptoms—sneezing, a runny nose and itchy eyes—can occur with COVID, that’s generally not how it starts. COVID can start in different ways, but dry cough, fever, fatigue and loss of sense of smell are four common symptoms. Unlike flu, which typically comes on fast, COVID symptoms may emerge over several days. It often starts with fatigue or a minor cough.3. COVID symptoms that aren’t common allergy symptoms include chest tig…