For those who have had a very rough winter this year, the end of the bitter cold may be in sight.The bad news is, a harsh winter with a sudden upswing of spring temperatures can spell an intense allergy season.
Pollinating plants have been under snow for many months now. Sudden spring temperatures like much of the country is currently experiencing can cause those plants to grow quickly, which is good, but also means a lot of pollen is released all at once.
Kansas and Oklahoma, especially, are experiencing record high pollen counts. Whether you’ll have a particularly bad allergy season this year depends heavily on where you live and travel.
Much of the Northeast is still under snow, so pollen counts have yet to be determined. Many Western states, like California, are in a pretty serious drought, so pollen counts are low there as well.
The duration and severity of symptoms you’ll experience also has a lot to do with which plants are in your area. If you’re in an area with a lot of Cedar trees, like Austin, Texas, you can expect a heavy allergy season this year. Oaks are active, too, as folks in New Orleans are currently learning. Many trees pollinate early in spring, then fade out as grass begins to pollinate. Weed pollens, such as ragweed, typically don’t show up until late summer or early autumn. Predicting the exact time and duration of pollen is a bit like predicting the weather, though, and is unlikely to be 100% accurate.
