Achi news desk-
As the snow melts on the ground, allergy season begins in Alberta.
Parts of Canada are seeing rising levels of pollen, but according to one allergist and professor of medicine, it’s too early to tell how bad it will be in Alberta.
“Allergy season in Alberta usually starts as soon as the snow melts because of the molds that build up under the snow,” Dr. Harissios Vliagoftis of the University of Alberta told CTV News Edmonton on Monday.
“We didn’t get that much snow during the year, so it’s hard to say if it will be worse.”
Vliagoftis says a warmer winter could cause plants to start producing pollen earlier in the year, which could cause problems for some people who suffer from allergies, ranging from mild to severe.
“Symptoms of allergies can affect our noses, stuffy nose, runny nose, lots of nasal secretions can affect your lungs,” said Vliagoftis.
“Some people who don’t have asthma will have asthma symptoms during the spring or around other allergens that could also affect our skin or other organs.”
Pharmacist Will Leung says treatments vary depending on the symptoms.
“If they have itchy eyes, for example, and that’s the only symptom, you can give them eye drops,” he said.
“If their general symptoms are a runny nose, sneezing and so on, then you would choose a nasal spray.”
He suggests that allergy sufferers contact a doctor or pharmacist to find the product that works best for them.
Vliagoftis says there are many factors in the spring that can affect the severity of allergy season.
“We have to see how the humidity and the heat (and) the temperature goes over the next month to a couple of months to see if it will get worse or not.”
“A very wet spring, a very hot spring can increase [allergy triggers] a lot, and we have to wait and see what happens.”
He added that spring pollen usually tends to stick around until June or early July, and then there’s a break before another allergy season starts again in the fall.
“When the leaves start to fall, and leaves are rotting on the ground, and then we have again, many molds.”
