It’s that time of year when people all around the world start to experience watery eyes, an itchy nose, sneezing, and coughing. All of these symptoms are due to the high increase of pollen. Pollen is a yellowish powdery substance that when you come in contact with it, it can cause you to be itchy or stuffy. Most people experience pollen allergies and during the spring season, these allergies are at their worst. During the spring, the pollen is released from the trees and it can trigger these allergic responses. When your going for your brisk morning walk pollen counts are usually the highest especially if it is warm or windy outside. 

IB Sophomore Sameen Chowdury states “My pollen allergies are the worst early in the morning when I am going for a morning walk, or going to get the mail. Sometimes I start to get hives or marks and rashes.”

Lately, the pollen count has been increasing each day which can cause you to feel drowsy. However, there are some tips available to help manage and reduce your reaction to the pollen in the air. To help reduce your symptoms it is always suggested that taking a shower after outdoors helping remove the pollen from your skin and your clothes that you picked up from being outside, also, keeping your windows shut and using allergen filters helps keep the inside of your house clean and safe from pollen coming inside, checking the weather before stepping outside will help you become aware of the conditions and symptoms you might face afterward, lastly, knowing allergy medication that can help you feel better is always suggested. Some people are able to take medication or use a nasal spray to help relieve their symptoms. If it proceeds to get worse talking to your doctor is recommended to help find what works best for you.

Each person is different, however, there are some stated medications that are available to most people that help reduce your reaction to pollen. Claritin 24-Hour Allergy Relief is a medication most people use to help reduce the symptoms when exposed to pollen. It acts quickly to provide relief from sneezing, coaching, itchy nose, and eyes. Allegra is also another common medication that people take to help reduce their reaction to pollen. However, some people prefer to not take any “unnecessary” medication if they don’t need it. For these people, the nasal spray is a great way to help decrease pollen symptoms. Flonase allergy relief is a commonly used nasal spray to help treat itchy eyes and nose and reduce sneezing. Most people with pollen allergies use Flonase in the morning before they step outside.

Health Academy Raya Bhuiyan states “I use a nasal spray every night before I go to sleep to help relieve my symptoms. It is very effective, when I wake up in the morning in step outside I feel perfectly fine.”

 Another way to help treat pollen allergies without taking medication is locally sourced raw honey. Although this method is not scientifically proven to eliminate pollen allergies, it is used to help your body not produce a strong reaction when exposed to honey. Most locally sourced raw honey contains small amounts of pollen from your local environment to help your immune system get used to it and stop making you cough and sneeze. 

Chowdury says “To help with my pollen allergies, I usually use a medication such as Claritin because it gives me instant allergy relief and helps with my rashes, itchy nose, and sneezing.”Currently, in the Orlando area, pollen counts are extremely high, ranging from 10.2 on some days and a 10.7 on other days. The pollen allergens that are currently the worst and the ones to be aware of are oak, grasses, and bayberry. It is best to research the pollen counts each day before you go outside if you struggle with pollen allergies. This website here allows you to input your zip code or city and find out what the pollen counts are going to be on a certain day.