With just one day to go before the summer solstice, many people suffer from seasonal allergies, also known as "hay fever" and "allergic rhinitis", which can make you feel very ill. Carlos Andres Salgado, an expert in allergy and clinical immunology at Stanford, explains more about the condition that plagues 1 in 4 adults and nearly 1 in 5 children in the U.S.
According to the clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, seasonal allergies are steadily increasing in part due to rising temperatures and storms.
“This year, given the record rainfall in California that has led to super blooms, I have also seen an increase in symptoms. In my allergy clinic, I am seeing more and more children experiencing an increase in symptoms this year compared to previous years,” she said.
With COVID-19 already a part of our lives, it may be difficult to differentiate symptoms between allergies and those of a viral infection, so the expert suggests observing whether the individual has a history of similar symptoms at this time of year; if they have gastrointestinal illnesses such as diarrhea, vomiting, nausea or constipation, among others, since seasonal allergies do not usually present them.
In addition, it is necessary to check if there is a fever, since high temperature is very characteristic of viral infections.
“When in doubt, I encourage my patients to follow the precautions they would use if they suspect a viral infection, such as testing and masking,” she said.
What do I do about this seasonal allergy?
Dr. Salgado noted that there are currently several preventive therapeutic options for treating seasonal allergies. These include medications for symptomatic relief, such as over-the-counter antihistamines, nasal steroids, nasal antihistamines, and eye drops.
In addition, there are subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) anti-allergy injections, which are more successful in the long term.
SCIT involves routine injections, while SLIT involves tablets or drops administered sublingually.
During elevated pollen levels, for an individual's specific triggers, she also recommended limiting outdoor activities, keeping windows and doors closed at home, wearing N95 masks if outdoors, and for some patients, using saline rinses and showering as soon as they get home.
In a study by a group at Stanford, researchers found that temperature and drought were linked to increases in the average annual number of weeks with exposure to pollen and mold, resulting in eight to nine more weeks per year between 2002 and 2019.
However, changes in response to climate change vary markedly for different plant species and locations.
"Not all plants have had an increase in pollen count in response to climate change, so the impact of climate change may differ between people due to differences in triggering allergens," the specialist said.
Another study based on model projections, he said, reported that ragweed awareness will more than double in Europe, from 33 to 77 million people by 2041-2060, as a result of climate change.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), non-Hispanic white adults are more likely to have a seasonal allergy (28.4 percent) compared to non-Hispanic African Americans (24 percent), Hispanic Americans (18.8 percent), and non-Hispanic Asian Americans (17.0 percent).
They also noted that boys (20 percent) are more likely to have a seasonal allergy than girls (17.7 percent).
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