5 tips to help your child survive seasonal allergies in 2021

A year into quarantine you are no doubt ready for spring and summer 2021. But for many of us, this is also allergy season. It can be especially hard to watch our children suffer with sniffling, sneezing, and coughing their way through these beautiful warm days.

Allergic rhinitis caused by pollen is referred to as "hay fever." Substances that come from grass, flowering plants, trees, and weeds cause the immune systems of allergy sufferers to release signal that lead to congestion, itchy eyes, runny nose, and sneezing, as well as problems like sinus pressure and allergic conjunctivitis (itchy, watery and red eyes). Unfortunately, this year, seasonal allergies might be worse than ever. In fact, 5.2 million children were diagnosed with hay fever in the past 12 months.

Factors like climate change and warmer temperatures, have increased pollen production over time. Seasons with warmer temperatures are longer, resulting in a higher concentration of pollen. Additionally, increasing levels of CO2 contribute to greenhouse effects which also correlates to a higher concentration of pollen production in the air.

Another factor impacting kids is that they have quarantined for the past year, with limited times outdoors. With time outdoors limited by the pandemic last summer, and with a gradual return to regular routines, schedules, and activities, many parents are noticing their children are sneezing, coughing, and rubbing their eyes more than in past allergy seasons. Spending much of the past year indoors may have made them more sensitive to allergies. This phenomenon can occur with time spent away from an allergy trigger, leading to more robust allergy symptoms upon re-exposure.

Often, the best thing is to minimize exposure to allergens by not going outside when the pollen count is high. A great tool to monitor this is with an interactive allergy forecaster.

Here are 5 more tips for surviving the allergy season:

If you have pets, keep them in the house on high-pollen days. Pollen may stick to their fur and end up in your nose.

Pet fur, itself, is not an allergen, but it can hold and collect dander, saliva, and allergens like dust and pollen. These allergens can transfer from your pet's fur to hard surfaces or through the air during daily household activities like dusting or vacuuming. Once in the air, the particles can remain over time.

1. Change your AC filters regularly and consider getting a HEPA air filter to strain allergens out of the air in your home.

High-energy particulate air (HEPA) filters trap more than 99 percent of pollen, dust, and smoke. During peak pollen-producing seasons, it is advised that HEPA filters are changed out every other month. In particularly high pollen count periods, filters need to be changed monthly.

2. Use over-the-counter allergy medicines to relieve symptoms: antihistamines to relieve your itchy nose and sneezing, and decongestants to get rid of your stuffy nose.

Over-the-counter medications can include an oral antihistamine that include loratadine, cetirizine, and fexofenadine, decongestants like pseudoephedrine, or nasal sprays containing cromolyn sodium. There are also non-medicinal alternatives like sinus rinses (using a squeeze bottle or neti pot) with saline solutions or filtered water to irrigate the sinuses.

3. On high pollen days, change your clothes when coming in from outside.

Like pet fur, pollen can travel onto your child's clothing or skin causing further irritation after coming inside. Once inside, have your child put their clothes in the laundry, shower, and make sure they do not get into their bed without cleaning off potential traces of pollen.

4. Keep windows and doors closed to reduce pollen entering the house.

Although it might be tempting to leave your windows and doors open on a nice, warm day, airborne pollen can enter your home -irritating an allergy sufferer further. Pollen counts are often highest in the morning when you might be more prone to keep a cool breeze moving through your home before the summer heat increases throughout the day. The best way to protect your home from pollen is by keeping your windows and doors shut on high pollen count days.

When it comes to treating your child's allergies, there are solutions that span from over-the-counter medicines and allergy shots to testing for inhalant allergies for more severe allergic diseases. Examples of inhalant allergies may include pet, plant, and food allergies.

If your child is struggling this allergy season, Reid Allergy can help identify the source of the allergy to determine the best treatment plan available.

To make an appointment with Dr. Jason Casselman, contact one of Reid Health's three convenient locations. His office is currently accepting new patients. Patients can also request an appointment online.