Why has it taken so long to add more Covid symptoms to NHS list?

Experts question how helpful it is to expand the symptoms list, now that the majority of people cannot access tests without paying for them. Photograph: Maureen McLean/REX/Shutterstock

Ministers are finally acknowledging what has been patently obvious since the beginning of the pandemic: Covid is associated with far more than the oft-cited symptoms of high temperature, persistent cough and loss of sense of smell and taste.

With little fanfare, a further nine potential symptoms have now been added to the official list on the NHS website, including diarrhoea, loss of appetite, sore throat and tiredness.