What to know about spring allergy season

One factor that has become increasingly important to consider when assessing allergy season is the impact of global warming.

“With global warming, we’re now seeing a longer pollen season,” said Stephen Krinzman, associate professor of medicine and director of allergy services at UMass Memorial Medical Center. “And also with increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the air, the increased carbon dioxide feeds the plants, which actually increases the intensity of the pollens.”

Each spring, the severity of pollen allergies fluctuates. The strength of spring allergies is highly dependent on the weather because pollen depends on warm weather, Krinzman said. The earlier it warms up, the longer the period that the trees can pollinate.

“Allergy season usually starts in March, which is interesting because that’s before you see the trees pollinate,” Krinzman said. “We actually already have measurable levels of tree pollen in this area.”

Medication is the best spring allergy fighter, and there are a variety of options available. Krinzman said that for many people, over-the-counter options will do, although sometimes more targeted treatment is needed.

“Generic forms of Claritin, Allegra, Zyrtec, those are convenient because you can just take them as needed,” Krinzman said. “They have no side effects for most people and are good for sneezing and itching. For more severe allergies, it makes more sense to put the medicine where the problem is and it’s nasal sprays, which work much better.

However, some nasal sprays, such as Oxymetazoline, which goes by the trade name Afrin, can be addictive. Krinzman said steroid nasal sprays are the safest because they can be effective without making the body dependent on them.

“The steroid nasal spray really stays in your nose, they don’t enter your body,” Krinzman said. “It’s not like taking a steroid pill, and they’re not addictive. When you stop it, it wears off like any other medicine. There is no addiction you get from these.

The timing of taking allergy medications doesn’t require as many predictions as some might guess. Krinzman said medications in pill form can provide relief in as little as an hour, while steroid-family nasal sprays work within five days.

Krinzman said the best way to avoid allergen exposure is to keep outside air from coming directly into the home, no matter how tempting the spring heat might be.

“So if you have air conditioning, which works great as a pollen filter, keeping the house closed during your pollen season and using the air conditioning can make a big difference,” Krinzman said.