As many seasonal allergy sufferers are likely aware, this is the peak of ragweed and weed season in the Chicago area.
Dr. Rachna Shah is an allergist who conducts the Loyola Medicine daily pollen counts. The latest tally found weed and mold at high levels, with ragweed moderate, but rising.
“Over the past few weeks, we’ve been seeing it kind of increasing gradually. Now we’re at the peak of it, so hopefully the next couple weeks are going to be bad for those who are allergic to ragweed, and then things are going to start settling down,” Shah said.
That’s typical timing for ragweed season, but Shah says mold is a bit atypical this year.
“We had such a warm and humid early summer, we were getting high mold levels throughout the summer, and it’s just been increasing and increasing and increasing,” Shah said.
Shah said allergy sufferers typically wish for an early frost, because it can bring relief from symptoms, but that hasn’t happened in recent years.
“If it’s anything like the past couple years and we’ve had like, kind of these milder falls and winters, then it may be just mold is going to be a longer season and be increased,” Shah said.
Tips for managing allergy symptoms include:
- Minimize indoor pollen – Keep your windows shut and use your AC or a HEPA purifier to filter allergens.
- Shower after being outdoors – To remove pollen you pick up outside, take a shower and change your clothes.
- “All of that mold and pollen can kind of stick onto you too, so by washing it away, it helps a lot. Same with pets, if you have a pet and they’re going inside and outside a lot, wiping them off and so just kind of trying to decrease your mold and pollen exposure as much as possible,” said Shah.
- Know your allergy relief options – from medications to nasal sprays, talk to your doctor about your options.
“So if your family is having, like, a lot of itchy eye symptoms, there are over-the-counter eye drops that work really well. Nasal sprays are really good, and now we have two that are over the counter on the market,” Shah said.
Steroid nasal sprays, such as Flonase, can help reduce inflammation in the nasal passage and relieve symptoms of nasal congestions or a runny nose. They take about a week to work.
Antihistamine sprays, such as Astepro, block histamines and can have an impact right away.