Blame the weather. “Trees received a healthy amount of precipitation during a very cold winter,” says Paul Gomes, M.A., director of allergy research at ORA Clinical, in Andover, Mass. This was immediately followed by a sunny, warm and dry spring. So, instead of a gradual release of pollen, the burst of record warmth triggered an explosion of tree and plant pollen.
A high pollen count, according to The Weather Channel, is about 120. Yet, in early April, Atlanta recorded a pollen count of 5,722—its second-highest pollen count ever. Extremely high levels of pollen occurred elsewhere throughout the South, Midwest and the Plains.
“Pollen exposure of as little as 10 minutes … induces both nasal and ocular allergic symptoms,” Mr. Gomes says. About 80% to 90% of allergic rhinitis patients also experience ocular allergies. “For allergy sufferers, periods of high pollen days increase the severity and frequency of ocular allergic symptoms in relation to nasal allergic symptoms.”
