Allergy Season

Every year around this time, many start suffering from the dreaded allergy symptoms. With the warmer weather comes those yellow clumps of doom, also known as pollen. Studies tend to find that different regions of the United States have different sensitivities to certain allergens. One study found that in the western parts of the US the sensitivities are higher for grass and ragweed while the east have higher sensitivities to molds (Source). Whether an individual lives in a rural or urban area also makes a difference for types of allergies. I found this website that shows different maps for different types of pollen allergies. This is currently the level of sensitivity to tree pollen in the US. 

Source

Around 40 million Americans suffer form allergies. An allergy is the body’s oversensitivity to something that is harmless. Sneezing, itchy eyes, congestion, and a runny nose are some of the ways the body tries to get the allergen out. Seasonal allergies are hard to avoid for most because no one wants to stay inside all day. 

There are many factors that go into the pollen allergies within a city including: wind, rainfall, humidity, temperature, pollution, and the type of trees (Source). One example is a town in the mountain area where pollen does not tend to be as bad. There is usually a high population of evergreen trees that have heavy pollen. The heavy pollen falls to the ground faster and does not get inhaled as easily. Cities near the ocean tend to have low pollen counts because of the wind.  In places near lakes on the other hand, the humidity levels may be high which can result in more pollen (Source). 

There has even been a list made of the top 10 worst cities for seasonal allergies (Source). This is determined by the pollen count in the area, the number of prescriptions prescribed, and other factors. 

10. Baton Rouge, Louisianan 

9. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

8. Memphis, Tennessee

7. Dayton, Ohio

6. Wichita, Kansas 

5. Louisville, Kentucky 

4. McAllen, Texas

3. Chattanooga, Tennessee

2. Knoxville, Tennessee

1. Jackson, Mississippi 

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