Apr 25, 2025
Brandy Straface, with UHC ENT & Audiology, is here to answer your questions concerning springtime allergies.
1. How are seasonal allergies diagnosed?
Unlike colds, seasonal allergies usually last longer than a week or two. Knowing the specific cause of your allergies can help you prevent exposure and treat your reactions. Often, a skin test or allergen-specific blood test can help confirm which type of pollen you’re allergic to.
Seasonal allergies often run in families. If your parents or siblings have allergies, you’re more likely to have them, too. Many people with seasonal allergies also have asthma. Pollen can trigger asthma, causing symptoms such as shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing.
2. What are some medication and other treatments that may provide relief?
Your health care provider may suggest saline rinses to ease nasal congestion or antihistamines to relieve a runny nose, sneezing, and itchy eyes. Some antihistamines include decongestants, which can reduce congestion, but those medicines are not for everyone. Your provider may also suggest a nasal steroid spray.
For more serious cases, your health care provider may prescribe allergy shots. Over time, these injections can provide relief by reducing your immune system’s reaction to a specific pollen or other allergen.
3. Can weather be a factor when it comes to seasonal allergies?
Absolutely. Warmer temperatures linked to climate change are extending pollen seasons, allowing plants such as ragweed to produce more pollen for longer periods. Increased carbon dioxide levels, another consequence of climate change, may make pollen even more potent, which can cause stronger allergic reactions. Research also suggests that extreme weather events such as heat waves and even thunderstorms can trigger or worsen allergy symptoms.
While seasonal allergies can be frustrating, they can be managed. Get to know your triggers, take precautions, and get support from your health care provider so you can enjoy the season without the sniffles.
This content was originally posted on the WDTV News website here.
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