Allergy season is worse than usual. Here’s what you can do to get some relief

PITTSBURGH — If you are spending any time outside, you likely are feeling symptoms like watery and itchy eyes or inflamed sinuses. It’s a prime time for allergies and doctors told Channel 11 this year is much worse.

“We have really high counts of pollen allergies, like tree pollen, grass pollen and flower pollen are starting to come out now. So, what is happening now, although it’s getting beautiful outside, those of us with allergies are starting to suffer,” said Dr. Brian Lamb with Allegheny Health Network.

Spring has sprung early when it comes to the pollen count outside, which means more people are suffering the symptoms.

“This is as green as we’ve seen things in the year, most of our spring flowers are already gone, everyone who has an oak tree in their yard has already dealt with the cat cans in their yard,” Lamb said.

But it’s not the end of the pollen season, rain has played a factor this year.

“Usually, people want to complain about it raining, but rain is good for pollen because it knocks it down; the exception to that is grass pollen. Grass and mold pollen tend to be in clumps, so when it rains really hard, it takes those clumps and sends it back into the air,” said Severe Team 11 Meteorologist Scott Harbaugh.

So, no matter the weather right now, the pollen will impact you, so what can you do?

“If it’s going to be nice and warm for a few days, actually think about keeping your windows shut, and if you have air conditioning, use that instead. If you just have your furnace running low without heat, that’s good to circulate the air through the filters,” Dr. Lamb said.

When it comes to medication, Dr. Lamb recommends a steroid nasal spray or just a traditional over-the-counter antihistamine. He suggests avoiding the decongestants, as they can lead to other medical problems if overused.

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