Climate change could be leading to worse allergy seasons

Average Spring temperatures have warmed nearly 2.5 degrees over the past 50 years leading to earlier and longer growing and pollen seasons. Experts say this could be a new normal we have to get used to.

Average Spring temperatures have warmed nearly 2.5 degrees over the past 50 years leading to earlier and longer growing and pollen seasons. Experts say this could be a new normal we have to get used to.

ANYWAY SNEEZING AND COUGHING ITCHY EYES. IT’S ALL AROUND RIGHT PEOPLE IN GREATER, CINCINNATI. NO STRANRSGE TO SEASONAL ALLERGY AND EXPERTS ARE TELLING US THE PROBLEM CLDOU BE GETTING WORSE. UNRTFOUNATELY WLWT NEWS SAYS METEOROLOGIST ADAM BERNSTON EXPLAINS WHY WE MAY BE SEEING THESE CHANGES. SPRING MEANS BL FLOWERS, BUT IT ALSO MEANS ALLERGIES THIS TIME OF YEAR ALSO KEEPS EXPERTS AT THE SOUTHWEST OHIO AIR QUALITY AGENCY BUSY TRACKING POLLEN COUNTS. SO THOSE SUFFERING KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT GIVES THEM SOMEIN KD OF TRACK RECORD TO LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, TRY AND TCKRA DAYS WHEN THEY HAD MORE SEVERE SYMPTOMS VEUSRS MAYBE LESS SEVERE SYMPTOMS. WELL ALLERGY IS VERY AOSCRS THE UNITED STATES CINCINNATI’S THOUGHT OF AS A HOTBED DUE TO OUR TOPOGRAPHY IF YOU'V’ GOT A AN AIR MASS. HEAVILY LADEN WITH PAWN OR MOLD SPORES THEN YEAH WOULD TEND TO KIND OF SETTLE IN THAT VALLEY POLLEN COUNTS CAN VARY DAY TODAY EVEN YEAR TO YEAR DEPENDING ON OUR WEATHER PATTERN. YOU CAN SEE THAT VARIATION OVER THE PAST 20 YEARS OF POLLEN DATA COLLECTED RIGHT HERE IN CINCINTI.NA ESPECIALLY SAY OUR ALLERGY SEASONS SEEM TO KEEP GETTING WORSE. THEY SAY ONE FACTOR IS OUR CHANGING CLIMATE AVERAGE SPRING SPRING TEMPERATURES HAVE INCREASED NEARLY TWO AND A HALF. TREES OVER THE PAST 50 YEARS. IT’S CAUSING THE POLLEN TO BLOSSOM EARLIERND A STICK AROUND LONGER AND THE SAME CAN BE SAID FOR GRASS SEASON. WE WOULDN’T HAVE EXPECTED GRASS POLLENO T ALREADY START TO POLLINATE, BUT WE’RE STARTING TO SEE THAT INUR O OUR POLLEN COLLECTORS ANGLO WITH OUR GROWING SEASON BEGINNING EARLIER DAN POLLEN SEANSO LASTING LONGER DR. MYERS SAYS OUR BODIES AND IMMUNE SYSTEM ALSO PLAY A ROLE AND HOW BAD OR ALLERGIES GET WITH PRING.MI IT’S THE IDEA THAT EACH SUBSEQUENT YEAR YOUR ALL. WHICH WERE MANEDAG WITH OVER-THE-COUNTER STUFF WILL NOT BE AS MANAGED AS WLEL BECAUSE IT TAKES LESS AND LESS OF THE ALLERGEN TO CAUSE MORE AND MORE OF THE ISSUE. ,SO HOWAN C YOU GET AHEAD OF YOUR ALLERGIES DR. MEYER SAYS THEES BT WAY IS BY SEEKING SPECIFIC ALLERGY TREATMENTS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE QUICK TO RECOMMEND IS ALLERGY SHOTS BECAUSE IT’S A THERAPY THAT’S BEEN USED FOR OVER A HUNDRED YEARS. ITARS. IS A VERY EFFECTIVE THERAPY AND ESSENTIALLY CHANGING THE IMMUNE SYSTEMND A IT’S THE MAINSTAY REALLY OF ALLERGIC DISEASE TREATMENT, SO WATCH OUR UPDATES ON POLLEN COUNTS DURING WEATHER USE OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICINE BUT FOR TOUGHER SYMPTOMS TALK TO URYO DOCTOR IN ED

Climate change could be leading to worse allergy seasons

Sneezing, coughing and itchy eyes. People in Greater Cincinnati are no strangers to seasonal allergies, and experts tell us the problem could be getting worse. This time of year also keeps experts at the Southwest Ohio Air Quality Agency busy tracking pollen counts so those suffering know what to expect. "It gives them some kind of track record to look at trying to track days when they had more severe symptoms versus maybe less severe symptoms," said Chris Harrison with the SW Ohio Air Quality Agency.While allergens can vary across the United States, Harrison says Cincinnati is thought of as a "hotbed" due to our topography. "If you've got an air mass that's heavily laden with pollen or mold spores, then yeah it would kind of tend to settle in that valley," Harrison said.Pollen counts vary day to day, and even year to year due to our dynamic weather, but specialists say our allergy seasons seem to keep getting worse. They say one factor is our changing climate as average spring temperatures in the greater Cincinnati area have increased nearly two and a half degrees over 50 years. "It's causing the pollen to blossom earlier and stick around longer, and the same could be said for grass season, that we wouldn't have expected grass pollens to start to pollenate but we're starting to see that in our pollen collectors," said Dr. Gordon Myers, a physician with Cincinnati Allergy & Asthma.Along with our growing seasons beginning earlier and pollen seasons lasting longer, Myers said our bodies and immune systems also play a role in how bad our allergies get. "With priming, it's the idea that each subsequent year / your allergens which are managed by over the counter stuff will not be as managed as well because it takes less and less of the allergen to cause more and more of the issue," Myers said.So how can you get ahead of your allergies? Myers says the best way is by seeking specific allergy treatments. "Things that we're quick to recommend is allergy shots because it's a therapy that's been used for over a hundred years, it is a very effective therapy in essentially changing the immune system and it's the mainstay of allergic disease treatment," Myers said.So make sure to watch our updates on pollen counts during weather, and use over-the-counter medicine, but for tougher symptoms talk to your doctor.

CINCINNATI —

"It gives them some kind of track record to look at trying to track days when they had more severe symptoms versus maybe less severe symptoms," said Chris Harrison with the SW Ohio Air Quality Agency.

While allergens can vary across the United States, Harrison says Cincinnati is thought of as a "hotbed" due to our topography.

"If you've got an air mass that's heavily laden with pollen or mold spores, then yeah it would kind of tend to settle in that valley," Harrison said.

Pollen counts vary day to day, and even year to year due to our dynamic weather, but specialists say our allergy seasons seem to keep getting worse. They say one factor is our changing climate as average spring temperatures in the greater Cincinnati area have increased nearly two and a half degrees over 50 years.

"It's causing the pollen to blossom earlier and stick around longer, and the same could be said for grass season, that we wouldn't have expected grass pollens to start to pollenate but we're starting to see that in our pollen collectors," said Dr. Gordon Myers, a physician with Cincinnati Allergy & Asthma.

Along with our growing seasons beginning earlier and pollen seasons lasting longer, Myers said our bodies and immune systems also play a role in how bad our allergies get.

"With priming, it's the idea that each subsequent year / your allergens which are managed by over the counter stuff will not be as managed as well because it takes less and less of the allergen to cause more and more of the issue," Myers said.

So how can you get ahead of your allergies? Myers says the best way is by seeking specific allergy treatments.

"Things that we're quick to recommend is allergy shots because it's a therapy that's been used for over a hundred years, it is a very effective therapy in essentially changing the immune system and it's the mainstay of allergic disease treatment," Myers said.

So make sure to watch our updates on pollen counts during weather, and use over-the-counter medicine, but for tougher symptoms talk to your doctor.

Climate change could be leading to worse allergy seasons

Average Spring temperatures have warmed nearly 2.5 degrees over the past 50 years leading to earlier and longer growing and pollen seasons. Experts say this could be a new normal we have to get used to.

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