Autumn brings allergies
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That stuffy nose you have may not be a cold. Fall allergies can be as bad as spring allergies.
Priya Tandon, MD, a member of the Backus Hospital Medical Staff with an office in Colchester, said sometimes people get a double whammy of allergies and a cold, but more often it is one or the other. Colds will last a couple of days and then the sufferer will begin to recover. Allergies, on the other hand, can linger for weeks, she said.
"For a lot of patients it's obvious," Dr. Tandon said. "They go outside and the symptoms begin or get worse."
Sneezing, a stuffy nose, runny and itchy eyes are all commons allergy symptoms.
Like spring allergies, fall allergies can become worse when there is a lot of moisture, said Olawale Ayeni, MD, a member of the Backus Medical Staff with a practice in Colchester. This can trigger more mold spores, a common allergen. However, one of the biggest fall culprits is ragweed, Dr. Ayeni said.
According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, 75 percent of people who have a pollen allergy are allergic to ragweed.
The recent cool mornings are likely to have slowed the pollen release from ragweed and helped the symptoms to abate, according to the foundation. Ragweed is a plant found in rural areas and the pollen counts are highest closest to the source. But pollen from ragweed has been proven to travel as much as 400 miles.
The foundation does rate Hartford, Boston and Providence as hot spots for fall allergies, bordering Eastern Connecticut with three areas that have been tested for very high rates of fall allergy sufferers.
Drs. Ayeni and Tandon said there are ways to prevent the suffering. Keeping windows closed and staying indoors when pollen counts are high is one way to reduce symptoms and keep homes free of pollen. There are also numerous medications a doctor can prescribe for an allergy sufferer.
A visit to the doctor can help a sufferer pinpoint the cause of the allergy. Knowing the cause will help the patient reduce exposure to the problem.
To track the pollen count, call the National Allergy Bureau at 1-800-9-POLLEN or visit the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology online at www.aaaai.org.