If you’re among the many people out there struggling with red, itchy eyes and a plugged-up nose, welcome to allergy season.
Dr. Stephanie Liu, a Calgary-based family physician, tells 1130 NewsRadio that allergy season is starting earlier in the year, the effects are lasting longer, and the symptoms are much more intense than people are used to.
One of the biggest factors is the climate crisis.
“For myself, I actually never had seasonal allergies, but in recent years, I find myself experiencing that stuffy nose, the runny nose, the sneezing, and a lot of the reasons we think this is, is higher amounts of pollen are being released year to year,” she explained.
“That’s because with the warmer weather in recent years and the higher release of carbon emissions, that causes the allergy season to last longer.”
Liu has family and friends in B.C., and she says they’re struggling.
“They’re noticing similar things, too. They’re noticing that even some people without seasonal allergies before are now experiencing that, and some people with existing allergies, their symptoms are getting worse.”
Liu explains it’s not easy to avoid, but explains that it may be your best bet.
“When you’re indoors, make sure to keep your windows and doors closed to keep that pollen out. When you’re driving, keep the windows closed. When you come indoors from outside, make sure to wash your hands and face to rinse off that pollen, or better yet, if you can, hop in the shower to give your body a quick rinse.”
There are also medications on the market that may help.
“Nasal saline rinses can help flush out the allergens from the nose. Prescription nasal steroid sprays can also help further reduce those symptoms of nasal congestion. And antihistamines, like Reactine, can help with sneezing, the itching, and the runny nose symptoms.”
If none of that works, she recommends going to your doctor or booking an appointment with a specialist to figure out the next steps. She explains that symptoms can interfere with your ability to work and your mood.
Liu says if you take medication every day, it will not make you immune to it and will remain effective.
For anyone who has symptoms currently and may be new to it, she admits it can be hard to know if it’s allergies or a cold.
“They have a lot of similarities, but there are some key differences,” she said. “The first thing is duration, so seasonal allergies can last for months versus the common cold, which typically resolves within two weeks.”
“The next is the onset of symptoms with seasonal allergies, it can happen right away once you’re exposed to pollen, versus with the common cold, you might notice a little bit of a sore throat, a little bit of a cough, then it goes into that full-blown cold.
“Another thing is nasal discharge. With seasonal allergies, you often get clear, runny discharge. With the common cold, you can get that clear, runny discharge, but often it can become discoloured and look really yucky in colour too.”
Don’t expect a fever with allergies, either, and your eyes don’t tend to get itchy when you have a cold, she explains.
Liu says allergy season is picking up right across North America. A comment backed by a recent report from the Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America, which finds seasonal allergies are worse today compared to three decades ago.
Data from the USA National Phenology Network shows pollen concentrations have jumped 21 per cent across the continent over that same time period.
With files from Maria Vinca.
