Summer heat, outdoor fun … and cold and flu symptoms ?

The three may not go together in many people’s minds: partly owing to common myths about germs and partly because many viruses really do have lower activity levels in the summer.

But it is possible to get the sniffles — or worse — in the summer. Federal data released Friday , for example, shows COVID-19 is trending up in most states, with emergency department visits up among people of all ages.

Here’s what to know about summer viruses.

The number of people seeking medical care for three key illnesses — COVID-19, flu and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV — is currently very low, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Flu is trending down and RSV has been steady. But COVID-19 is trending up in most

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