United States: The symptoms of Bay Area locals, who are entering social media with daily posts about failure of their allergy therapy, are persistent coughs, sniveling noses, and exaggerated mucus.
According to Oakland resident Darren Hall, “This year has been different. Face tingles, congestion, sneezing, coughing, runny nose, sore throat,” as sfstandard.com reported.
According to reports, the Alabama native is used to seasonal allergies while growing up. Cars standing out coated in pollen are a common sight; however, people in the area have never experienced such debilitating symptoms as they are facing this season.
What do experts have to say?
A KRON4 meteorologist Dave Spahr said, the reason for the out-of-the-park reactions is twofold, firstly the recent weather changes which is late-season rains followed by bright sun.
He added, “Everything is growing like crazy,” as sfstandard.com reported.
The second reason he cited is that the atmosphere is not flushing out the high pollen counts as the amount is being generated. It is further exacerbated by the combination of heavy rain and shining sun.
Saphr said, “We’ve had local winds but not synoptic ones,” while talking about the regional winds that have created more movement of winds.
According to AccuWeather’s allergen forecast, tree pollen has been on a continuous rise and reached an “extreme” level on Monday.
Furthermore, climate change and global warming made significant contribution to the warming of the environment. It is accompanied by the hightening the duration and intensity of pollen season, as stated by the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.
Allergy-related illnesses are a national phenomenon
Further reports suggest that an increase in allergy-related illnesses is not just the Bay Area phenomenon, as the recent study has suggested that the spring season has shifted to commence as early as 40 days across the nation. Therefore, it gives more time for pollen to be produced and allergies to spread.
Rise in number of patients
Dr. June Zhang, an allergist with South Bay Allergy and Asthma Group, said that she has been noticing a surge in the number of patients because of the increased rainfall.
Additionally, seasonal allergies in the Bay Area have almost become a year-round phenomenon, according to Zhang.
She said, “You might get a little break in November,” and “Allergies are like an avalanche or a flood,” “You need to be consistent about using it.”